Creative Cravings: Coffee

Coffee, coffee, coffee, I can’t count the number of times this beverage has provided for me. It’s not just a wake up, a little boost in the middle of the day, it’s a conversation piece, a networker , and a connector. I work from my favorite coffee shop, Café Fioré, almost daily. I’m here at least five to six days a week for one to sometimes eight hours a day. My daily habit has lead to great friendships and some really cool work that I have found both rewarding and satisfying. Coffee is a global experience that you can share with anyone in the world. From dusty shanty towns to posh palaces, Fair Trade to instant, coffee provides that predictable, yet infinitely satisfying effect that gets many through the day.

The Business Card: My first for Creativeisvital

I have been working on my business card for a while and after several false starts, I have finally come up with something I actually like. Holla at me and let me know your thoughts. I’m still wrestling with where to place my web address, GRRRR.

Hump That Brand Day: McDonald’s

Mc Donald's entry, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Basque Country

As much as I have loathed them in the past, I have to say that McDonald’s has done a great job at transforming themselves into a brand and experience for the new century. I remember when McDonald’s corp was seeing a slide in sales and image in the U.S. I was reading about it in all the business trades and seeing it throughout L.A.  At the same time, I also heard about different creative ideas McDonald’s was testing to win customers back. They were looking at everything from location of stores, menus, taste, trends, uniforms, menu layouts, lighting, technology, interior and exterior architecture, bag design, national, regional, local, ethnic, graphic design, pretty much everything. All the while brewing up something that would translate globally and still resonates today. McDonald’s golden arches and three words underneath “I’m lovin’ it” managed not only to re-brand McDonald’s and send sales up, it became everyone’s McDonald’s. “I’m lovin’ it” may sound simple but could you imagine hearing the phrase for anything else? Even if you hated fast food, you couldn’t deny the appeal of those commercials of “real” people singing, rapping, laughing versions of the new theme song. At the time I thought “I’m lovin’ it” was in the U.S. It wasn’t until I visited Finland that I realized that the re-branding was global. Overall I think it’s a great example of what a holistic creative approach can do to fulfill and exceed business, brand, marketing, and customer expectations.

Type Tuesday: Handmade Signs in Jamaica

So while I was in Negril Jamaica a couple of years ago, I fell in love with all the hand made signs. Many were hand painted straight out of the can onto walls, pieces of wood, or whatever surface could advertise the business at hand.

Form follows cultural identity.

Creative Cravings

Elvis Is Dead

This photo is of my high school classmates car. Kai McBride was always an original thinker and doer. This hand painted station wagon was driven all over the south, for a matter of fact, he picked me up at a family reunion in it. For me, it’s a great example of fulfilling a creative craving.