The German company Tonies SE that developed the Toniebox, an innovative audio system for children, combining a wireless speaker with collectible figurines called Tonies, together with the UK based design agency Collaborate that focus on story telling for children, commissioned TypeTogether to create a bespoke headline typeface substituting their previous retail script font.
Since its foundation in 2016, Tonies has grown into the largest interactive audio platform for kids globally. This project sought a typeface refresh that aligned with the brand’s existing look while introducing a more modern and refined feel. The new script needed convey a playful yet elegant tone, embodying sophistication, premium quality, and exuberance.
Ella Tonies Script is used alongside the Museo font in single-word formats, though the improved legibility might in future expand its use to full sentences. The design favors swashes and expressive capital letters for large displays, while maintaining a consistent x-height with Museo and avoiding unclear ligatures.
The previous design utilized an adapted version of Bello Script Pro, but it faced several challenges. Key issues included low legibility of certain glyphs and difficulty in recognizing some letter combinations, which impacts readability. Additionally, there were concerns regarding font licensing, and the font also struggled with scaling restrictions, limiting its adaptability for various design sizes and formats. These factors necessitated consideration of alternative solutions to address these limitations effectively and thus Tonies decided to commission a new ownable brand typeface.
Ella Tonies Script is designed for versatile usage, spanning commercial printing, in-house low-cost POS, in-store displays, LCD screens, online platforms, motion graphics, and newspaper printing. It offers excellent legibility across a full range of sizes, ensuring clarity on both digital devices and print media, including newspapers. The font’s recognizability and distinctiveness of glyphs are particularly effective in medium display sizes, making it ideal for brand differentiation.
Particular attention needed to be paid to enhance the clarity of certain glyphs, such as t, h, d, and r. We have worked intensivly with Collaborate and the internal design team at Tonies to find the best and convincing solutions for the various problems faced. Over the course of several months and with great help by super talented designer and letterer Petra Dočekalová we have explored different directions and expression for Ella Script.
Contextual alternate letters for a–z were created to improve the appearance of handwriting.
CREDITS
Art direction: Veronika Burian
Design: Petra Dočekalová
Engineering: Joancarles Casasín
Client: Tonies SE
Agency: Collaborate
TypeTogether is an indie type foundry committed to excellence in type design with a focus on editorial use. Additionally, TypeTogether creates custom type design for corporate use. We invite you to browse our library of retail fonts or contact us to discuss custom type design projects.
