MIXED MARTIAL ARTS ECOMMERCE IDENTITY

Ascendant MMA

Background:

Ascendant MMA is a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) ecommerce retailer. MMA is the combined discipline of boxing, wrestling, muy thai kickboxing, and jiu jitsu most commonly found in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Because of the nature of the sport being both striking and ground fighting, it more closely resembles a street brawl than an elegant kung fu movie.

We sell equipment and apparel from a number of major brands to the practitioners and fans of this sport.

It would be accurate to ascribe some "tough guy" identity to our brand, but there is also a strategy to the sport that insiders appreciate and celebrate. We don't want to come across as purely brutish.

"Ascendant" means a dominant and controlling position, a critical part of the MMA sport and the edge our store gives our customers.

Colors & Logos We Like:

Colors are open to your creative interpretation, but a review of the target audience and MMA industry will probably lead you towards dark & masculine colors.

Google the following brands to see logos in the MMA industry that we like:

Combat Sports International
Everlast
Throwdown
TapouT
Venum
Grant
Fairtex

... every one of which is inspired by Nike and Adidas, but who isn't?

broadly: adult males 18-35 in United States
specifically: MMA athletes and fans
emotional core: masculinity, toughness, confidence, power, discipline

Our audience is health-conscious and sports-obsessed. Other subjects on their mind might include poker, beer, motorcycles, and beautiful women.

To get a feel for the demographic, you can watch this quick video of a fight weight in:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4jQ4bLAPgI

Observe the music, people, clothing, logos, etc.

- It must contain the word "Ascendant", and must contain EITHER "MMA" OR "Mixed Martial Arts".

- It must be brandable. It has to sit well on it's own and be unmistakable in the industry.

- It must be memorable.

Beyond this is open to your creative approach.

You can use just typography, or you can create a mark as well.

If you can tie the name/idea of the brand into the image itself, that could be a creative approach.

EDIT:

This martial art is very different from the asian martial arts popular in cinema. Asian themes are probably not appropriate given the demographic.