General 5 — SMD

Branding

Projects include a Brand Extension relaunch for the DWR Contract division, complete re-brand for Lapine, a flexible brand kit for YANY, brand enhancement elements for Lime Rock Park and brand guides for SoBe.

Brand Extension

DWR Contract

This is a project that I did for Design Within Reach for their Contract division. This was an exercise in brand enhancement. DWR is a titan in the luxury/mid-century modern furniture space. The goal here was to increase awareness around the Contract aspect of the business and to gradually incorporate the new DWRC Contract logo into the sales kits and presentation materials. And since the product is spectacular, from a design standpoint my goal was to get out of the way and let the photography be the star - but still have elements from the brand kit make an impact where needed.

Re-Branding

Lapine

After doing some contract work for Lapine, I was excited to find the mutual interest in coming on full-time as the Creative Director for this incredibly passionate family-owned brand engagement company based in Stamford, CT. Having worked for the brand, I had been thinking their existing logo didn’t match the power this company had - exceptional employees that had all been working at the company for years. That kind of dedication to the family ownership, each other and their clients wasn’t being represented as clearly as the experience they were providing. Ownership agreed and we embarked on a journey to re-brand the company to match the energy, skill and expertise the company was known for. We landed on a bold color palette, warm imagery and a logo that focused on connections. What was so unique about the company was that the long-lasting bonds the employees had with each other and with their clients produced products and solutions that brought our clients closer to their consumers in similarly deeper ways. This layered experience is represented by the three stacks that the logo forms from its connection points. This complete team effort involved dialogue, input and feedback from the entire company during the process and was one of the most fulfilling projects that I’ve ever done in my career.

Existing Assets

Promotion and Application

For a designer, working with existing brand identity and assets is one of the most rewarding challenges. You are not called upon to create something entirely new, you are tasked with understanding what is powerful and effective about what has been given to you to work with. Taking the essence and intent of the brand identity, yet knowing where your opportunities are to execute creative solutions within the ecosystem consumers are already engaged in. This project was a tiered GWP (gift with purchase) program that would build value with repeat purchases that was promoted as a celebration of summer travel (a kit that would start with a fun travel bag to a fully expanding rucksack). Other examples include promotional ideas for Bic and refinement of a brand kit for a capital investment firm.

Brand Development

YANY

This is a project that I did for Alexander Isley studios, where we created a flexible branding kit for Young Audiences New York. The kit included cut paper and collage elements. We showed that they could be utilized in many ways and altered to best fit the project at hand - yet still be a comprehensive and recognizable brand application. Alex is an incredible Creative Director as he is able to get to the client’s goal in so many unexpected ways.

Legacy Brand