Principals evolves Melbourne Business School brand

Branding agency Principals has evolved the brand for Melbourne Business School (MBS).

Jointly owned by the business community and the University of Melbourne, MBS is home to Australia’s best MBA and business analytics degrees, as well as short courses for professionals and custom training solutions for organisations.

The School called on Principals to refresh its brand with MBS Head of Marketing & Communications Rion Shelley noting: “We’ve partnered with Principals before, and the team came to this rebrand with deep insight into who we are and what drives us. Their understanding of our ambition made collaboration effortless – strategic when it needed to be, creative where it counted.”

Working closely with the MBS marketing and leadership teams, and in collaboration with some of Australia’s leading marketing academics, the project began with a deep dive into the legacy, impact and ambition of the School.

The scope of the work included the development of brand positioning, campaign platform and updates to the visual and verbal identity system. The evolved brand was research-tested with prospective students.

From early brand workshops and positioning development through to creative concepting, each step of the process was grounded in the School’s belief that great leaders are shaped through purpose, persistence, and community.

With this in mind, Principals created the Transformative Lens: a design system that reflects the way learning at MBS changes how people see the world. This led to the “Made. Not born” campaign, a powerful platform celebrating transformation, learning, and the making of exceptional leaders.

Says Principals Creative Director Rachel Terkelsen: “Taking on a project with a brand that’s such a leader in its field as MBS is always an honour and a responsibility. With this brand update and campaign, we’re modernising heritage to celebrate the personal journey: the effort, learning and community needed to make exceptional leaders.”

Adds Shelley: “At MBS, transformation isn’t just a promise – it’s our students’ lived experience. Principals captured that idea beautifully with the Transformative Lens and the new bold, contemporary expression of our brand, grounded in our signature maroon and built to shine across every channel. We’re proud of how it looks, and even prouder of what it stands for.”