Brand Thinking and Other Noble Pursuits

“Designers are very good at thinking about provocations. After all, they are in the imagination business. They are trained to look at existing systems, spot where stasis lives, and think of ways to make things new. What designers are not so good at, in my humble opinion, is figuring out what happens next, what comes after the provocation.”

Coca-Cola knows what they’re doing, and they know that manifesting their vision from large gestures down to the tiniest gestures is a very potent idea. They know how to make it substantial, actual, and both present and compelling in the world.

“It is very important for me to produce work that is conceptually ahead of its time.”

I think this is when, for me, branding became about recognition and attachment. Now, I think that brands are a reflection of one’s personal compass.

Increasingly, we will see brands, or, if you like, cultural phenomena, coming from countries that previously we did not take seriously.

Our ability to adapt to so much change and to also be the force for change—both good and bad—is extraordinary.

The design firm has to be able to make the right choices around what’s going to be the most critical thing that will break through to consumers to build that relationship—that familiarity yet distinctiveness that connects with consumers.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with examining inspiration and figuring out why it’s so compelling.

designers create and interpret culture.

There are different levels of meaning associated with any given brand, some of which are absolutely new to a moment, and others that are continuously there over time. A brand is composed of these meanings. These meanings are being carefully chosen and crafted. And then they’re managed, because we’re swapping meanings in and out to make the brand ad