SAN MARCOS — San Marcos City Councilman Randy Walton recently launched a citywide promotional campaign with the help of local graphic designer Mike Nelson. The campaign, called Sunny San Marcos, is an effort to support local breweries and businesses during the COVID-19 crisis.
Walton came up with the idea to create a logo and a slogan to promote San Marcos. To start, he has launched stickers that were designed by Nelson, founder and creative director of Type G, a branding and design company.
The design features a bright San Marcos, rolling hills next to a body of water and the city’s iconic Double Peak Park.
“I thought it would be cool if we had an image that evoked all the beautiful natural assets that we have in San Marcos like our hills, our trails, Double Peak Park, tons of sunshine, plus the ocean is not far away,” Walton said.
The stickers have been made available for free at local breweries Dos Desperados, Lost Abbey (both San Marcos locations), My Yard Live, Rip Current, Urge Gastropub/Mason Ale Works, Double Peak Brewing, San Marcos Brewery and Wild Barrel, in addition to La Fleur’s Winery and Old Cal Coffee & Eatery.
Residents who want a sticker must visit one of these establishments and purchase food or a beverage.
“I just hoped to use it to not only evoke pride in our city but to use it to help our local businesses during such a difficult economic crisis,” Walton said.
Walton added that he has been promoting the stickers through social media, and the feedback from the community has been very positive, so much so that he expects to order more stickers soon.
Nelson, who used to live in San Marcos and now resides in Encinitas, told The Coast News that this project meant a lot to him, and he had a lot of fun doing it.
“My intention was to make it be simple, yet interesting and infuse all of the special features that San Marcos has to offer,” Nelson said. “The water, the sky and the way the landscape lights up around sunset time — I wanted it to be a little whimsical and have a happy, loose feeling.”
Walton said he’s considering expanding the project to include other products besides just stickers. He’s also hoping to include more local businesses that may need support from the community.
