Branching out into a whole new kind of beverage.
With declining craft beer sales, rising seltzer and canned cocktail offerings, and the strategic objective to bring more women into the MadTree brand, we knew it was time to go beyond beer.
Enter Sway - delicious, artfully crafted vodka soda based on consumer research, trend and flavor exploration, beautiful branding and an extensive launch campaign.
Recently ranked Cincinnati's #1 canned cocktail, and sales that make it #2 (under giant High Noon) locally, Sway is literally crushing it. And with continued flavor innovation, seasonal variety packs and limited edition offerings, Sway stays relevant and beloved in the hearts and fridges of consumers.
Process included:
-Consumer, category and trend research
-Brand naming
-Consumer testing
-Brand strategy, design and story
-Multi-faceted launch campaign
-Influencer kits and events
-Flavor and product innovation
-New product launch campaigns
-Multiple photoshoots
-Social media strategy and content development
-Event sponsorships
Bringing a new riff to an old tradition
New Riff is a new kid on the bourbon block. They’re a small, independently owned company and they are dedicated to doing one thing above all else – making damn fine whiskey, and doing it well.
With their four-year aged bourbon set to launch this summer, they needed a brand strategy, story and tone of voice to deploy across every touch point, and a good looking bottle to put their great tasting liquid in. I helped craft every part of the brand strategy - from promise to positioning to character, and set the tone for the future of the brand.
Process included:
-Brand strategy
-Brand story and beliefs
-Website copy
-Social media strategy
-Video scripts
Transforming the in-store experience, and sales, at VCF
The mattress shop at Value City Furniture had become a snooze fest. So VCF challenged their two main suppliers Serta & Sealy, to a competition – to transform the bedding section of their stores. The winner would get key exclusivity of the VCF mattress shop, the loser, the opposite.
I helped develop the winning concept and campaign for the job. The Dream Big concept won a multi-year contract and saw a 25-30% increase in sales throughout all stores in its first market test.
Process included:
-Concept development and story
-In-store signage, wayfinding and floor graphics
-Product and technology descriptions
-Creative installations
-Sales representative scripts
Innovating and shaping a brand for ten years across two companies.
Olay is an old, familiar friend of mine and I’ve touched the breadth of the brand for over a decade.
From campaign strategies on Total Effects, to the launch of Definity, to marketing on cruise ships and ski resorts (to which I was unfortunately unable to visit), to naming and positioning Fresh Effects, to architecture and portfolio strategies, I’ve done it all. Truly, the list goes on and on.
Process included:
-Brand architecture and portfolio strategy
-Consumer segmentation
-Innovation concepts for consumer researching NA and China
-In-store campaigns, direct mail, holiday promotions
-Print ads
-Social media strategy and copy
-Nomenclature
-Packaging copy
Designing wine for dudes
Constellation Brands wanted to add a red wine brand to their portfolio and they had a goal in mind: steal share from the craft beer category and target men. So we did.
Spoken Barrel is a gentleman’s wine through and through. Born of the pathway we deemed “Things of Substance,” it’s a wine of quality, character and the kind of straight-forward confidence that speaks for itself. As Constellation’s COO says, “This is a home run. Why aren’t we charging more for this?”
Process included:
-Innovation session
-Concept development and consumer research
-Naming
-Brand strategy
-Packaging copy
-Activation ideas and in-store displays
Creating bodycare to change the world
The Mad Optimist is a customized bodycare brand created by three incredible guys with infinitely good intentions. Organic ingredients, sustainable practices, a sliding pay scale and equal pay for all employees are just a few of the qualities that make this company amazing.
All the visual and verbal assets for the brand - from the name to the packaging and everything in between - were created in one room over the course of three days by myself and a handful of designers. Crazy, right?
Process included:
-Company vision, mission and values
-Name (it was previously called Design My Soap)
-Brand story, tagline and “Humanifesto”
-Brand strategy
-Mantras
-Website
-Packaging
-Social strategy & calendar
Celebrating African American icons and a new eye shadow collection
As the world’s largest African-American owned cosmetics company, Fashion Fair has been developing products for women of color since 1973. With a new smoky eye collection about to launch, they needed a campaign that would smolder in Ebony magazine, online and beyond.
I helped develop the “Simply Eyeconic” concept to bring elegance and edge to their new collection, creating a campaign that’s reminiscent of revolutionary African-American icons (Nefertiti, Cleopatra, Josephine Baker). From concept to Ebony magazine to Nordstrom’s in-store signage to web, the campaign turned heads, captured new consumers and brought a modern twist to Fashion Fair’s historically strong equity.
Process included:
-Concept development
-Campaign strategy
-Advertising, web, and in-store executions
-Naming strategy
-Photo shoot casting and creative direction
Unleashing a wickedly good brand and story - from concept to completion
In the early 2000s whiskey sales more than doubled as consumers around the world embraced the uniquely American spirit. To keep innovation momentum strong, Beam needed to uncover the next big story in whiskey: enter Jim Beam Devil’s Cut.
From partnering with R&D to concept and brand development, down to final execution, I helped carve out the right combination of cool story, unique positioning and devilish attitude to make the proposition distinct in the category.
Process included:
-Innovation session
-Concept development and consumer research
-Brand story, character and positioning
-Naming and packaging copy
-Brand guidelines
Touching every aspect of a brand
When I first encountered Showa and Best Gloves, they had hundreds of products and innovations, and multiple brands that were complicated and disjointed. We simplified and strengthened, unifying SHOWA as one global powerhouse in hand protection across every touchpoint.
We started with the very essence and foundation of the brand – its vision, mission and beliefs, its architecture, positioning and identity – and then extended outward, touching every aspect of the brand, internally and externally, physically and digitally, creating a holistic brand experience that reached and connected consumers, customers and employees across the globe.
Process included:
-Architecture
-Portfolio Strategy
-Corporate Strategy
-Naming
-Collateral & Brochures
-Website
-Video
-Tradeshow Booths & Materials
-Product Advertising & Catalogs
-Public Relations & Speech Writing
Making a (wo)manifesto matter for younger consumers
Despite the fact that Maidenform invented the first modern day bra back in 1922, by two women to boot, it had lost its luster to modern day Millennials. The brand needed a boost, a personality and a voice that was relevant in a world modeled by Victoria Secret.
We gave the brand a new look, tone and feel, along with a new (wo)manifesto that’s hard not to rally behind. The result was refreshing and relevant, with a playful voice that boasted mantras like “may your cups always be full” and bra sizes that made women feel 34 A(mazing) or 34 B(eautiful).
Process included:
-Consumer research
-Brand strategy, story and voice
-Manifesto and mantras
-Communication strategies across department stores and mass markets
-In-store strategy and signage
-Collection naming
-Product positioning
Stirring an innovation pipeline
Beam Suntory had a big goal: to expand their product portfolio across multiple brands and appeal to whole new set of thirsty consumers. As a Kentucky native and long-time bourbon aficionado, working on Beam brands was a bit of a dream come true.
I was part of the Beam Suntory “innovation agency of record” team, helping develop and launch a pipeline of new product innovations, from bourbon and whiskey to cordials and tequila, totaling 28 new products to date.
Process included:
-Category and consumer research
-Multiple innovation sessions from Kentucky to Texas to Canada
-Concept development
-Naming
-Positioning
-Brand strategy
-In-store promotions
Creating a breakfast brand from scratch
We were charged with creating a whole new granola breakfast brand and store concept based almost exclusively off the Maverick Archetype.
We had a ton of fun creating three completely unique concepts slicing and dicing different facets of a Maverick - into a rogue, rebel and renegade. The following examples highlight one of those concepts, the rogue, or Black Sheep as became the brand name. Each concept was comprehensive from brand name, story and tagline to interior and store implications to packaging, social media and swag.
Process included:
-Category assessment and out of category inspiration
-Conceptual pathways and strategies
-Naming, story, tone of voice and mantras
-In-store design and implications
Transforming a brand via voice
Herbal Essences needed a brand makeover and new set of younger consumers. So that’s what we gave them. From declining sales and a stale campaign to a fresh, fun, cheeky brand, Herbal skyrocketed with a 40% increase in sales after a brand re-stage.
I helped define, direct and execute the Herbal verbal strategy, tone of voice and nomenclature over a number of years and through many new product and boutique launches, touching everything from positioning to packaging to promotions.
Process included:
-Brand story, values and vision
-Brand voice and character
-Consumer research and profiles
-New product innovation
-Nomenclature
-Packaging and promotional copy
Inspiring a wonder-full positioning and identity
KidKraft is the global leader in products that inspire creativity and empower children through play. But the brand had little recognition—even with consumers who owned many of their products. With emerging competitors and organizational shifts, KidKraft needed to evolve its brand with a differentiated positioning and expression to match.
I helped mine insights, develop platforms and create a positioning and look that unified and amplified the brand – inspiring parents, kids and employees alike.
Process included:
-Category audit
-Inspirational design target
-Positioning pathways
-Brand strategy
-Brand story
-Consumer touchpoints
-Employee engagement
Penning a story and strategy of home
Cincinnati has been in a renaissance for the past few years, evolving from flyover city to cultural hotspot—but regional groups knew it was just the start. Fusing forces, a multi-stakeholder group of business, tourism, talent and community leaders came to us to write the next chapter.
What the region needed wasn’t a campaign—it was a call for a new positioning, sparking deeper collaboration among diverse players. To tell the right story, we created a strategy rooted in themes of home and connection, and a narrative threaded with the city’s DNA.
Process included:
-Stakeholder interviews and research
-Brand positioning, promise, character and beliefs
-Brand story and tone of voice
-Print ads
-Video script
-Workshop where I trained various groups how to use the new tone of voice