Blog

  With the average person spending around 1842 hours at work per year we believe happiness and a healthy work culture are an imperative part of day to day operations. Happiness at work has become serious business these days with more and more workplaces wanting…

What is it about motorcycle brands? Harley Davidson has long been held-up as an example of branding at its finest. There’s something about the emotional connection between people who love to ride motorbikes and the brands who effectively tap into that emotion that adds a…

Inspiring audacious entrepreneurship for the next generation of business leaders Background The Wade Institute for Entrepreneurship is a new Institute that offers a Masters of Entrepreneurship course at Ormond College, Melbourne University, named after successful Australian entrepreneur, Peter Wade. ‘We are a smart nation but still too few…

So you want a website and you want it now. There are alot of easy ‘web page builders’ out there these days which allow you to create your website using the drag and drop method. That’s fine if you need to launch your site in…

Sooma is all about simplifying the mattress buying process, designing the perfect mattress and caring for the planet. The Challenge. Our client is a manufacturer of high quality foam. They wanted to sell mattresses direct to the public but they couldn’t use their B2B brand.…

Reading through the articles about the upcoming ALDI rebrand I’m struck by what seems to be an inability for people to grasp some of the strategic rational behind this rebrand and rebranding in general. Everywhere ALDI has opened, they taken on established supermarket brands and…

AFL Women’s League An Untapped Brand Sponsorship Treasure Chest. If  last Friday night’s opening game of the AFLW is any indication, the belief that there’s no interest in women’s sport is fading fast. Even the AFL themselves were not prepared for the crowds that came…

Multinational soft drink giant introduces its new brand architecture strategy to Australia. After decades of establishing more niche brands, Coca Cola has shifted back to what they call the ‘one brand’ design. Essentially, they are now refocusing on creating a stronger master brand, with more…

Custom Apple accessory maker 12 South has created a ‘New Mac Smell’ candle for this Christmas. While it’s got plenty of headlines for obvious reasons. For me it raises the question: What do sensory branding do you do? We’re all aware of brands that have…

How after sales contributes to brand reputation After sales is often non-existent, designed to minimise costs, or simply not a priority for many brands – but it should be. With more and more consumers reading reviews online before purchasing, after sales service is becoming an…

  Have you thought about switching to brand? For any account handler / client service person looking to scratch an itch in their career path, in particular those working in traditional advertising big agencies, I’d love to give some accounts of my perspective in my…

When you apply for a job there are many things that lead to a strong application. We have put together some tips to help students, grads or anyone trying to get themselves out there in the design industry. This is the final installment of my 3-part…

Today in our faced paced, transformative society, enabled though accelerated distribution of content digitally, information is at our fingertips. Social injustice that has previously been accepted as the status quo, we’re no longer standing for it. Who are we? I’m speaking for myself, 31 year old…

Why lululemon is the new breed of brand A few years back I recall seeing a former Nike VP of women’s wear speak. She was asked what was the biggest change she’d seen in that category during her time at Nike. Her answer was the…

As brand designers we’re always hungry. Hungry for new inspiration, new palettes, new strategy and as a corner store of everything we do new typefaces. Fonts are so important when it comes to creating new brand identities or logos. Finding the right type to express the…

Applying for a design job can be a big task when your starting out! We have put together some tips to help students, grads or anyone trying to get themselves out there in the design industry. When I was starting my design career I had a…

The trend of minimalist branding We’ve had some recent discussion with clients and in turn in the studio about the relevance of minimalism in brand identity or logo design. Some point to a trend of recent rebrands like Pentegram’s work for Mastrcard, wondering if there’s…

When mega brands go organic Gatorade is introducing an organic version of it’s brightly coloured sugar water for ‘athletes’. While the new product will be tested in select markets it seams Pepsi Co., the parent brand, sees the threat to the market dominant sports drink from more…

Today’s post is an article written by Brandhook, good friends of ours and the sharpest brand research and insights agency around. If you didn’t know what Augmented Reality (AR) was a couple of weeks ago, chances are you do now. After reading our blog last…

Leveraging a brand image building opportunity When we worked with skin care clinic Duquessa to create a new ‘skin sanctuary’ brand we could tell they were destined for stardom. And recently they had a little extra time in the spotlight, making a guest appearance on…

It seem’s that Lululemon is now targeting the yoga loving, beer drinkers. Who doesn’t like a cold beer after a sweaty yoga session?… The global activewear brand has partnered with Canadian based brewery, Stanley Park Brewing to create a lemon hopped ale called ‘Courageous Blonde’.

BONDS introduces their first ever cross-category sports range – led by a perfectly on brand campaign. BONDS have recently announced the introduction of their first ever cross-category sports range. The collection features BodyCool technology, which boasts moisture absorbing and quick dry properties, and marks a…

Asshole or hero? Donate Life takes boldly different approach to organ donation. We often talk about the importance of brands being brave and different to truly standout and that’s just what Donate Life America has done with its latest campaign. The World’s biggest asshole dials…

Optus is the second largest telecommunications provider in Australia offering mobile, fixed, and broadband services to consumer and business customers. It has repositioned itself in the market with a flexible rebrand. You may remember their recent rebrand back in 2013 that received many mixed reviews and…

The changing landscape of hotel accommodation to target millennial travellers Since Airbnb’s disruption of the hotel industry from its inception in 2008, and pioneering a shift toward the sharing economy, many have predicted the demise of traditional hotels as a result. While younger travellers have…

Dior appoints Maria Grazia Chiuri as their first ever female creative director.  With an impressive portfolio, Maria was first snatched from label Fendi by Valentino and just recently has made her debut as creative director for Dior – the first ever female to run the fashion…

For all brands authenticity is one of the real hot buttons in their efforts to connect with consumers and build highly engaged relationships. Brands are telling their story at every opportunity, spruiking provenance, craftsmanship and history – regardless of whether they’re a start-up or a…

The ‘most important’ fashion photographer in the world. Bill Cunningham has passed away at age 87. A sad time for the fashion industry.  Bill Cunningham is regarded as one of the most important fashion photographers who ever lived. He began working as a hat maker and…

From boring and monotonous to creative and exciting – the success story of Samsung Mobile Thinking back to a decade ago, when consumers thought about Samsung, the image of a true technology and innovation company would spring to mind. Fast forward to now, Samsung represents a…

4 Basic rules the top brands are using to ensure brand survival Branding is one of the key areas a business should focus on in order to differentiate themselves within a crowded market. Brands that we have grown to love, would not have had such an immense…

Customer Evolution – The Important Numbers for the Future of Retail Brands Recently I attended a presentation on Global Trends in Retail put on by PWC. One of the speakers was Dr Violet Lazarevic from Monash Business Schools ‘Australian Consumer, Retail, and Services’ Research Unit…

How Wesfarmers’ cannibalisation strategy backfired, leading to Target’s downfall Brand cannibalisation occurs when a company offers a brand, product or service that directly competes with another within the same company. When this level of internal competition is directly head-to-head, only the strongest will survive. Australian consumers…

Music streaming giant Spotify continues their expansion of audio advertising by  allowing brands to sponsor their most popular playlists. Spotify has announced that they will be expanding their advertising opportunities by allowing brands to sponsor their most popular owned and operated playlists. Brands have previously been able…

When is a car more than a brand? Never! Specially when we don’t want to talk about the car, but we still have to sell them? Volkswagen latest campaign #morethanacar focused directly on the value of brand heritage to stir the emotions in the car…

The Finnish company signs a new agreement, making a comeback doing what they once did best, but is the boat already too far gone?  Two years after Microsoft’s mistreatment of Nokia’s mobile business, the Finland based company has signed a new strategic brand and intellectual…

Taking a Nude approach. Domestic glassware brand all about simplicity. Nude is a new domestic glassware brand that insists “simple is beautiful”. Nude want to appeal to a younger target market and brings a fresh new angle to a pretty out-dated and fair to say boring industry…

  Instagram made waves last week in the design and social media world by launching their much anticipated brand identity refresh, and UI overhaul to their loyal band of insta-obsessed-followers. The reason for the tech update is to create a better UI experience for users, paring back brand…

Australian business ‘Green and Clean’ sells bottled Australian air to China The Chinese markets growing demand for all things Australian continues to boom, from iron ore, to real estate, to baby formula and now Australian air. With China’s emerging middle class becoming increasingly worried about…

Donald Trump has one of the strongest brands in the world right now, and he didn’t have to change a thing to get there. Donald Trump has become one of the most powerful brands in the world, with the Trump boom continuing to grow every day. Trump has demonstrated…

UberEATS arrives in Melbourne, helping restaurants reach more consumers, but can the ‘market place’ app bring more harm than good? Melbourne recently became the first city in Australia to gain access to Uber’s diversification into food delivery services, UberEATS. UberEATS joins a highly competitive market…

The Sleep Revolution – A book all about the Zzz’s. We all know the effects of a bad night’s sleep. THE SLEEP REVOLUTION is a newly released book by author Arianna Huffington written to educate people about the benefits of sleep and how often this is overlooked.…

Calvin Klein founder discusses how current practices within the fashion industry are not good for the long-run The power of a brand essence has diminished over time within the fashion world. In the past, iconic fashion labels have endeavoured to ensure all touch points within the market…

From DIY home solutions and affordable furniture, to fashion and bicycles – IKEA has a plan to expand globally and meet the demands of the modern consumer. As the retail environment is ever-changing and adapting to new consumer needs, IKEA has been quick to recognise the…

All brands have associations – both positive and negative Whether carefully and strategically considered or by default, all brands hold associated meanings in the minds of the market place. Well considered brands establish a differentiated value proposition (their brand strategy) with layers of meaning to…

Monash University encourages the audience to look beyond the conventional and accepted, and challenge the status quo. Monash University has launched a new integrated campaign starring Australian actor David Wenham, which thanks people who accept what they’re told, for creating a world where answers should…

The 2016 Olympic Games in Rio is all about bringing people together and celebrating the environment. A closer look into the design of the logo, by Fred Gelli. The 2016 Olympic Games are fast approaching and this year it will be held in Rio De Janeiro in Brazil…

Will putting a trademark on hashtags restrict its ability to be successful? In recent times, brands have increasingly been using their own bespoke hashtags to communicate with customers. As the use of hashtags becomes more common, hashtag trademark applications filed have followed suite. The words…

As Instagram announces its changes to their timeline, are brands already planning for the future? Instagram have recently announced they will be gradually rolling out a new algorithm based timeline replacing the existing chronological format, with a broad roll out expected in the coming months.…

A true surfing legend – a snap of myself with Kelly Slater at the 2016 Rip Curl Pro. I was lucky enough to meet Kelly Slater over the long weekend at the Rip Curl Pro at Bells Beach, and it’s fair to say I am a pretty…

Open your mind, get up off the couch, move.  Anthony Bourdain is a reality TV personality, chef and author who has been exploring the world and sharing his travels with us all on his series No Reservations, The Layover, and Part’s Unknown. Bourdain has been in…

Sponsors using Sharapova’s news to kill two birds with one stone. Choosing not to stand by Sharapova because of recent events? Or was it just the perfect excuse to move on without facing public backlash? Nike, the same company that stood by Tiger Woods and…