It's all [Real] good

Anywho, Blu Dot recently executed what they call "A Real Good Experiment" where they outfitted some of their "Real Good Chairs" with GPS units and left them on curbs and alleys around NYC - free for the taking. The general idea isn't uncommon and is what's culturally known as "curb-mining": the act of finding abandoned furniture and art on the street and claiming it. The experiment was simply to see who would grab the chairs, where would they go, how would they get there, and what would their new homes look like? It's such a fun and simple idea that they document pretty well. You can check out more info about the Experiment on BI'm not exactly sure when or how I became a fan of Blu Dot. It kind of just seems like I always have been. Their simple yet creative modern design style just suits a lot of my tastes when it comes to home and office furniture. I love their color combinations, clean lines, and unique forms. I was thr ...

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Why do brands go retro?

I was in a supermarket last week when I noticed Post's Raisin Bran's "vintage" boxes. This cereal box caught my attention amongst a sea of cereal boxes with bright colors and cartoon characters. I had to stop, read the box and snap a picture...heck I almost bought the cereal because I was intrigued by its ability to get my attention.

That visit to the supermarket got me thinking, "Why is it that brands go retro?" Companies spend huge amounts of money annually on updating their brands and products to remain relevant to today's consumer. So why would a brand undo all those years of modernizing their brands/products with a vintage or throwback design? Here are some possible reasons that going retro can benefit your product or brand:

• Show consumers the longevity of your brand, which equates to quality. This can be achieved by creating a throwback look to commemorate an anniversary.


• Create exclusivity around your product in order to spark a quick window of demand - "For a limited time only."


• Present a solution or response to the penny-pinching consumer struggling in a recession. Retro packaging = back to basics. This presents the idea that you are getting a value for your dollar.


• Create a sense of nostalgia around your brand and connect to your consumer on an emotional level. The back of Raisin Bran's vintage box had a timeline of events taking place in 1942.


• Create intrigue and break through the clutter by doing something different. In my case, this is almost what it took to get me to buy the cereal.

I was in a supermarket last week when I noticed Post's Raisin Bran's "vintage" boxes. This cereal box caught my attention amongst a sea of cereal boxes with bright colors and cartoon characters. I had to stop, read the box and snap a picture...heck I almost bought the cereal because I was intri ...

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Happy B-day Barcode

Today's new doodle from Google marks the 57th anniversary of the day the first patent was made on the barcode. Granted to American inventors Norman Joseph Woodland and Bernard Silver three years after it was filed, patent number 2,612,994 was for a pattern of concentric circles, rather ...

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If the iPod was released in the '70s

A little obvious, but lets just say the iPod was released in the '70s, the new nano came out in '79, and Jobs was big on celebrity spokespeople. The ad might perhaps look a little something like:

The Fantastic Fox jumps over the Lazy Dog

I LOVE the nostalgia and craftsmanship in the new Wes Anderson stop-motion film, Fabulous Mr. Fox.

For one, stop-motion is just ridiculous. To think they create full length movies out of thousands and thousands of individual images is nuts! It took 24 individual shots to create thirty seconds of ...

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HunterGatherer + Incase =

A Man's Trophy

Forget the smooth black marble finish plaque with laser engraved gold plate wussy trophy. When it comes to a man's trophy, glue a motor grader to a piece of wood!

This is how we decided our client should award the winners of the First Annual Equipment Roadeo presented by the New Mexico Associ ...

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Sorry I'm Late

A stop motion short film by Tomas Mankovsky. No special effects, no blue screen. You gotta check this out.

Meat Cards!

This particular post combines two of my favorite passions: corporate identity and food. You gotta check out Meat Cards.
"Screw die-cutting. Forget about foil, popups, or UV spot lamination. THESE business cards have two ingredients: MEAT AND LASERS."
Oh, and if you're in the Albuquerque area, ...

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