Garrett works with leading and growing brands — and in close collaborative partnership with partners and agencies — to create, reinvent and manage breakthrough brands.

Yes and no. I’m a certainly a brand specialist in that I create unique verbal and visual identities based on unique brand strategies. But I work across sectors and include B2B and B2C branding in the mix. I believe this is essential to creativity.

Well, no. If you want to make something unique and useful –  that’s what branding requires. But if you have a clear brand strategy — or good research already (meaning a thorough written understanding of your project and market), and you have a plan for how to solve it, we’re half way there. And, good news, it’s never boring! Call me to discuss.

Each project is individual. But, like any other design process, it should be built out of an understanding of the marketplace, your customer and product(s) or service. First we take (or make) your unique strategy and define creative territories to explore. Then, when there is an agreed direction of travel, I create names and collaborate with you/your team to arrive at the strongest solution. Visualising these as research quality visuals or mockups helps the decision-making process.

Your brand architecture is a framework that aligns product and service offerings with brand and business strategy — and the customer journey. It’s designed to organise and simplify your brand(s), creating consistency and clarity across  channels. The goal of a brand architecture is to create a clear understanding of how customers perceive you as an organisation, what makes them want to do business with you, where they should go for various services or products within your portfolio—and how those services or products are different from one another. I’m the survivor of many brand architecture reviews. I believe a strong brand architecture is built from your audience’s point of view, not to represent your internal structures or power centres. That’s the key and should be your north star. But like many things in life – that’s easier said than done.

That’s a million dollar question. But the answer is not as much as that! As above, projects and problems to be solved come in all shapes and sizes, typically from a few weeks to a number of months and costs reflect the time involved. Call me to discuss.

No. I have an approach. In fact, blindly following a given style of work, whether verbal or visual design, is anathema to a genuinely differentiated brand. Yes, there are plenty of designers and consultants who have a house style and they may be a good choice for specific projects — and good luck to them. But if you ask me to repeat for you exactly what I have done for someone elsewhere, prepare for some tough questions ;-)

Projects and problems to be solved come in all shapes and sizes, typically from a few weeks to a number of months. Building a brand is an ongoing process, so while the strategy, messaging, creative and design phases are critical, it is even more important to have a guiding set of principles to guide you on what is a constantly changing and iterative journey. As a startpoint — to run a strategy programme from interviews to signed-off strategy document usually takes about 3 months.

Yes. More than half of my work is direct with companies (across both Consumer and B2B brands) and I have worked with major and upstart brands across brand strategy, new product development, brand naming, brand identity concepts and creating brand guidelines.