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Sloane initially found me through our mutual involvement in an online community for creative women and got in touch as I was wrapping up another branding project for a jewelry company. What I absolutely loved about my first connection with Sloane was her enthusiasm and excitement for tackling a rebrand — a rebrand that she knew she was ready for, especially when thinking about her long-term business goals and how to expand her business.

Sloane had been running her jewelry business since 2013, shortly after graduating college with her BFA. Like many business owners, particularly craftspeople and product-based businesses, she started out doing all of the branding and designing herself. And also like many of the same business owners, she realized she wasn't really creating or posting imagery with any particular strategy or theme in mind. The constant updating of the logo and flip-flopping on design styles wasn't serving her business or doing her beautiful products justice. By this point, Sloane was ready to take her business bigger into the wholesale market, but didn't feel like her current brand was strong enough to move forward with, which was discouraging. That's when she knew it was time to hire a designer and take it to the next level.

The beginning of this process was dedicated to becoming more intimately acquainted with Sloane's work, style, and goals for the rebrand and I usually accomplish this through an intensive brand discovery process that allows open sharing of ideas, thoughts, and references. Together, we were able to hone in on how she wanted her brand to be perceived, and how we could incorporate her aesthetic into the brand design itself.

After exchanging a few rounds of ideas + concepts, we were able to move forward with a fusion of two of our favorite concepts, which yielded the final result: a deco-inspired but still decidedly modern type treatment for the business name, and utilizing simple, impactful shapes and hand-drawn gem illustrations to add a bit of flair, and to use as a recurring motif to bring throughout the brand. It was thrilling to see how much the ideas behind the initial concept evolved throughout the process due to our collaborative dialogue yet also how true we were able to stay to her original inspirations. 

The final results for Sloane's updated branding were an incredibly sophisticated evolution from her previous DIY brand. And my favorite part of this whole process with her was seeing how she took her new branding and ran. While I did provide crucial pieces like the business card and post card designs alongside her primary and secondary logos, and other complementary brand elements like patterns and an eye-catching brand mark focused on the Sloane 'S' wreathed in gems, she truly incorporated the toolbox I gave her to expand on her own. 

Every client I work with receives a folder with all of their final assets provided in a number of accessible file types, as well as a brand guidebook to outline every single item from color swatch to logo placement, and how to use these files. From there Sloane was able to create new backing cards for her jewelry, screen-printed gift bags, and even a banner to use at her booth for her very first (and successful!) wholesale market.

What would you define as the catalyst or motivation for taking the leap and hiring a designer?

I decided it was finally time to hire a designer because I wanted to take my business bigger into the wholesale market. In order to stand out to retailers, I needed a cohesive, consistent brand, and I needed to be confident in what I was doing. I felt like my current brand was NOT strong enough to take into the market, so I was feeling discouraged.

How did you decide on a designer?

I looked at many different designers and packages, but ultimately, I wanted to work with Phyllis. I thought her portfolio was lovely, her website was clean, and easy to navigate and she seemed like she was focused and knows what she is doing! I felt very confident in her services and am glad I chose to work with her. She was definitely at the top of my budget, but I am glad I made it work. The results were way worth it!

What are your overall impressions of the design experience?

The experience on branding with Phyllis was a ton of fun! I marked all of our deadlines on my calendar, and would get SO excited for the days she was revealing concepts and ideas to me. I always was so happy when I would see concepts, and then I would be even more excited to see it develop further! I felt very at ease talking with her about any concerns or ideas I had, too, which made the experience very comfortable. 

Can you provide some examples of how you've been using your branding since we've concluded our work together?

I absolutely adore my new branding. My elements were all very fun to apply to various aspects of my collateral pieces and my website and I could not be happier. I really love how having a cohesive brand finally made all business decisions easier. I could reflect back to my mood board and branding board and see if everything fits together. I redid my entire packaging after branding concluded and it looks great now! I have little branded cotton pouches for my jewelry designs, and I got stickers, stationery and more! I also designed a new booth for my retail and wholesale shows that fits great with the branding. It is so fun to hear people walk into my booth and actually say my brand words when describing my pieces! 

What specific results and improvements have you seen in your business?

People will stop in my booth sometimes and tell me that the logo instantly caught their eye first. This is extremely helpful, because with jewelry, it is very difficult to snag people's attention when they are walking by since my pieces are so small. It is great to have a strong brand and logo that people will be pulled in from! The branding has also allowed me to be more confident and put myself out there in the wholesale market. Retailers are taking me a lot more seriously now. I finally have branding that I am proud of and can stick with for a long time. People will never have to wonder who I am and if I changed my logo again, they will always recognize that Sloane Jewelry Design logo and branding!