Building a brand that connects in many ways is one of the hardest things to crack. Still to this day one of our favourite brands is Nike. You’ll be surprised to know that it was created in 1971 by Carolyn Davidson, a graphic design student from Portland State University. The crazy thing is, she was only paid $35 (which works out at roughly £20, give or take) for the masterpiece.
Carolyn Davidson met Phil Knight (co founder of Nike) who at the time was an assistant professor at PSU. Davidson started helping Knight at a freelance rate of just $2 an hour whist Knight was beginning work on creating his own brand of athletic shoes.
Lo and behold, the Nike Swoosh was created. A “tick” shape designed to indicate movement and speed. The swoosh was also themed to lightly symbolise a wing to honour the Greek goddess of victory. This was created in 17.5 hours, which totalled to the amount of $35 (again, roughly £20). Davidson continued producing designs for Nike until she then branched out to be a freelance designer in 1975.
Carolyn Davidson was eventually commended for her tremendous input to the well known brand. The company threw a party to honour her and she was given a generous amount of company stock along with a diamond and gold ring featuring her iconic design.
This is just a small example of how important and influential a brand can grow on to be.
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Do you feel you’ve outgrown your existing brand? Or perhaps a friend initially helped you with an off-the-peg website and logo? If so, you’ve validated your business much like most companies do when starting out. But truth be told — this is quickly outgrown and can soon misrepresent and tarnish your company.
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Our strategic offering goes far beyond just graphic design, web design, and logo design. We collaboratively define and build brands to identify and promote the true potential of companies and products. That’s why on boarding us is always an investment, and never a cost.
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