Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts recognized the opportunity for a three-star hotel concept that offers the domestic Chinese business traveler an affordable interpretation of traditional Asian hospitality. MetaDesign developed the name and identity for launch in the Hong Kong market and across mainland China.

After working through several hundred choices in both English and Mandarin Chinese, Shangri-La selected the name 'Jen', a representation of a Chinese character that signifies the Confucian ideal of love and goodwill towards people.

The identity system works with both Roman letterforms and simplified Chinese characters, evoking the ideographic heritage of Chinese writing with a modern, streamlined look. The first Hotel Jen made its début in Hong Kong in 2008.