Latest / We Built This Brand / From Logo to Lifestyle: Rebuilding the Soul of La-Z-Boy, with Diana Quenomoen

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From Logo to Lifestyle: Rebuilding the Soul of La-Z-Boy, with Diana Quenomoen · We Built This Brand

• 0:00
  The world has shifted.
• 0:01
  Brands are demanding more and more today than they were yesterday.
• 0:04
  It's not about the campaign anymore.
• 0:06
  It's, it is, it's, but it's, and, and so
• 0:09
  it's about every experience of the brand.
• 0:13
  Welcome to, we Built this brand where we pull back the
• 0:15
  curtain on the people, the ideas, and the sometimes
• 0:18
  challenging process of building something that matters.
• 0:21
  Today I'm joined by Diane Quin, Moen, or DQ for short.
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  The head of design at Cole Mc Voy a creative
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  agency based outta Minneapolis, Minnesota.
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  Now, DQ has been passionate about design and marketing
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  for about as long as she can remember, and her work on the
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  La-Z-Boy rebrand really speaks to that lifelong passion.
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  In this episode, we're going to dive deep into that campaign and what it took
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  to help bring a century old company back into the spotlight and to update their
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  identity from the colors, to the fonts, to the decline and even the smells.
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  Yes, really the smells.
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  We're talking about it all in today's episode.
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  So without further ado, here's my conversation with DQ of Cole Mcy.
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  All right.
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  Well, dq, welcome to, we Built This Brand.
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  It's great to have you on the podcast today.
• 1:14
  Ah, thanks for having me.
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  Absolutely.
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  Typically, how I like to get these interviews
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  started is just by getting to know you a little bit.
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  So would love to know a little bit about your
• 1:23
  background and how you made your way to Cole Mc Foy.
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  Whew.
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  It's a long journey, but I like to say it simply in simple
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  terms of like, how, what sparked me to want to do this.
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  I was like a little nerd as a little as a kid, and, and I remember like, I
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  loved making people feel something, like making them get excited about an event.
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  And so I like birthday parties.
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  I had to do my own invites.
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  I had to dress.
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  The table, like what was the experience?
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  How were people feeling when they were with me?
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  Do they wanna stay even longer?
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  Like, that was like the test, right?
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  Like, you know, if the party ends at five but it's still seven
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  and now they're looking to spend the night like a sleepover party.
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  I was like, mission accomplished and I didn't know what the
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  hell or how the hell that would transform in the real world.
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  But eventually started learning about design and.
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  You know what I think really excited me once I, you know, went to school for it.
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  I went to the College of Visual Arts, our RIP in St. Paul Great
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  School, and took an internship at a place called Olson, which
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  was grand in its heyday, realized it's not just about aesthetics.
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  It's really also about the experience, right?
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  And how brands behave and how we, you know, involve people into the interactions
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  and, and what are those outcomes for them and how do we keep them coming back.
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  And I was like, this is just like the party, this is
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  just like Dqs birthday party at like five years old.
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  Like we're just building experiences that.
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  Make people feel welcome and, and wanna come back for more.
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  So it kept me excited.
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  I, I was really interested in just the branding aspect of
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  things, but wound up in advertising and traditional comms,
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  which was unique and a little confusing for me at first.
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  But when I realized that.
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  It can become kind of a special ingredient for the traditional
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  means of advertising that a design formula and thinking can provide,
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  I think something really unexpected to those ways of operating.
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  I got excited, so I went over to Kcvo and started up with a team building out
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  a really niche design offering there that's really taken off and I think Ben.
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  Our secret ingredient.
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  And so we're building and shaping that daily and it's
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  grown into some really great things and I think some of
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  our most recent work is a testament to that, that thinking.
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  So yeah, hopefully that was kind of the short answer.
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  I could talk for days about it 'cause I love
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  it that much, but that's really how it started.
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  Make people feel something.
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  That is so cool.
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  I mean, it is always interesting how like our childhood roots kind
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  of play into our future careers, or at least we hope they do, right?
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  Like not everybody gets that opportunity
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  or recognize.
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  Right.
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  Like how that could translate into a way of living.
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  And I was lucky enough to like somehow recognize it and
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  many people shaped that recognition, but I got lucky.
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  Yeah.
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  Yeah.
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  Very, very fortunate in that regard.
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  It's always really fascinating.
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  I have two young kids at home and my daughter is very much in this phase of.
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  Oh, we're gonna play this.
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  And she just comes up with like all the little details and all the little
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  things that she wants to do and how she wants me to like be in her world.
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  And I feel like that's probably a sign she'll
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  end up that day, that way one day too, maybe.
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  But that's awesome.
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  So with Col Mc, voy, you've, you've, you've been there for, for how long now?
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  A long time.
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  Traditionally, I think anyone in advertising, it's like three year stints.
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  Right.
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  And you never seem to retire in the industry.
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  But I've been able to stay, uh, for about 10 years there and hoping for more.
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  And it's just enabled me to, I think, grow.
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  They've trusted me.
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  They've let me fail, and they're good people.
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  They have a rule of no assholes, and they stick to it.
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  Hey, that's, that's important I think.
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  Yeah.
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  It's really important,
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  especially in the creative space, like it's so easy to
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  want to just shut down ideas or go a certain direction.
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  You gotta have the space, you gotta enable it.
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  So I feel very lucky that I've been in a place
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  where I could grow and evolve and have that space.
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  So I'm thankful.
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  As you've done work at Cole Mc Voy, I know one of the things I
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  was excited to talk to you about today is the La-Z-Boy campaign
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  and everything that happened there, how that got started.
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  Like you said, you have a rule of no assholes.
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  I think that leans itself to being another way of saying like, we, we value the
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  customer too, because there's a lot you could be like, oh, I'm a know-it-all and
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  I'm gonna come in and be the expert and you know, shove out your marketing team.
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  Push out this, these years of tradition and all this stuff that
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  your company has to bring our vision for what you should be.
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  So how did that get started?
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  How did that relationship get started?
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  Relationships.
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  I love that you bring that up.
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  I, it's honestly one of my key themes to success and
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  internally, like you just heard, my love for the space that I
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  work in and the people I work with, it matters just as much.
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  Externally, right.
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  The clients that we decide to take on.
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  And from their point of view too, like I hope that obviously they saw the
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  relationship first and, and I think I've heard, I mean, not think I've heard
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  directly from them, you know, that our collaboration seemed to spark right away.
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  Like we trusted one another.
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  We enjoyed one another's presence, but more
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  importantly, I think felt comfortable with each other.
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  Which was key, right?
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  And so it enabled me to push them when they wanted to be
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  pushed, and, and it allowed for them to come directly to me
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  and not wait for big meetings and big ta-da to do ta-da, right?
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  Like, no, like, they would just call me and be like, I'm, I'm questioning this.
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  I'm a little nervous, or, you know, whatever it might've been.
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  And we talked through it.
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  We talked through it together and, and that builds trust.
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  And I think without any of those conversations, had they not
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  been had, we would not have gotten to the place we did together.
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  I say together because it really was a combined effort.
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  It wasn't just me coming to them and proclaiming where we should go.
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  It really was all of us manifesting it together and believing.
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  Together, so it was a great ride.
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  What was the problem when you got started on the campaign?
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  What did they say that sparked this rebrand?
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  They came to us.
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  A hundred years is coming up.
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  It's a big milestone for them and for any brand
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  to last as long as they have is, is massive.
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  And they started reflecting on just culture and where people are at today
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  and how does that reflect in their brand ethos and what they stand for.
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  Right?
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  And realizing that, you know, comfort is a big force right now.
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  People need it more than ever, I think.
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  Right?
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  And they're seeking for those moments of respite.
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  And what's funny is La-Z-Boy was like, we offer comfort and, and
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  then some people are like, no, I think you've actually lost sight.
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  I think you've lost your soul and really that north star that you thought
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  you had and originally had, right, of like being that beacon of comfort.
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  They fell into like cliches, right?
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  Of like style over comfort category, conventions.
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  You look at their market itself and their
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  brand experience and it just felt very sterile.
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  They lost really the soul, right?
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  And so they came to us looking for it again, right?
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  Help us unearth what I think mattered most to
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  our brand and what was always been embedded.
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  You know, in everything we make, say and do.
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  From the beginning, we just lost touch of it.
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  Like help us dust that off.
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  And so we did that and it came to life through, of
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  course, identity and logo, but also brand experience.
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  How does the brand move?
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  How does it operate?
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  How do people interact with it?
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  Throughout, you know, every channel, you know, within their ecosystem.
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  And not just external comms, but even internal, it became like
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  a rally cry for their own employees, which was really exciting.
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  So we helped them move forward and I think find themselves, that's pretty cool.
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  It's pretty cool.
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  And I think we're, we're really successful.
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  It's, it's showing proof, you know, in the numbers already, so we're excited.
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  That's really cool coming up on a hundred years.
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  I mean, that's a big landmark for any business.
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  That's massive.
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  And so I guess take me through like how this redesign kind of
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  came to be in terms of like the, the creative elements of it.
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  'cause it in, in a lot of ways it's a throwback to the
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  original logo and some of the original branding, but it
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  feels, it still feels a little fresh, it still feels new.
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  It doesn't feel like you just copy paste it from the original back to the news.
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  So kind of take me through the thinking of that.
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  I'm glad you noticed that 'cause that was a big part of this.
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  Right?
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  And and it goes to a little bit of like the briefing, what
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  you just asked me of like, what did they come to you for?
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  And, and as I had mentioned, it was dusting off what was originally there.
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  That was, I think, really beneficial to their brand and that was comfort.
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  We came up with brand positioning, obviously, you know, enhanced their brand
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  purpose, looked at their values, you know, the traditional methods of looking at
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  the core of a brand and came up with a persona that often is usually a person.
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  We thought, well, Lazboy iss not a person.
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  It's a place.
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  It's a sense of place.
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  And we came up with this notion of.
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  The ah place, you know, like when you sit down, it's like, ah.
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  It was like, and it became our North star for everything that
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  we did, every choice we made in the brand, from the logo mark to
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  the experience, to the expression across their entire ecosystem.
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  And so ultimately, every choice we made needed to ladder up to that, right?
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  And so.
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  It was vital that like no matter what we crafted, no matter
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  what we created, signified that comfort and do it in a
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  modern way that I could think could be relevant for today.
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  That felt distinct in the category that pushed ourselves
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  outside of what others are doing, but more importantly, revisit
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  some of the elements you had in your past that were working.
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  And like, how do we channel that?
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  Because there was beauty in their brand in the beginning.
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  That's what I think helped 'em stand up for a hundred years.
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  So we just needed to dust some things off and
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  bring it back and I think reshape it for today.
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  I love that, that comment about the ah place because it it to, to me, when
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  I think a La-Z-Boy, just as a brand without the logo, like I think of.
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  I, I think of a couch.
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  I think of a chair.
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  You know, I mean, there was a lazboy dealership near my house for ages.
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  I'm, I'm used to seeing that brand places and that, you know, when I hear
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  someone has a lazy boy, like I know it's gonna be a comfortable chair.
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  It's something you wanna sit in, it's something you want to be comfortable in.
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  It felt very sensorial to us, which is what we wanted.
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  How can the brand have all these like tentacles that make you
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  feel something and not just expect it in the physical realm?
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  Like, what does emotional comfort feel like?
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  What does it even smell like?
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  What does it, what does it feel like?
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  Like physical touch and like it became this operating
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  system for us and how we crafted experiences for the brand.
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  I mean, think digital, like their website was kind of a hot mess.
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  It wasn't easy to choose products and to source,
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  you know, the different aspects of the product.
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  And so.
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  We decided, well, even that experience should feel ah, and calming and easy.
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  So now you can kind of start to see how that, uh, you
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  know, brand, the core, the truth of what they represent.
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  And that persona reflects itself through
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  everything they do and everything we created.
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  It was pretty match.
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  Yeah.
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  And the interesting thing about working with a brand like this
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  is you're not just talking about ads and a brand and maybe,
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  maybe slapping the logo on a few items like this can have its
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  branding like literally embedded in the final product itself.
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  Yes.
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  I mean, this became the soul of everything.
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  They make everything they say, everything they do, every action they take.
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  And so write down to product design and, and curation and creation.
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  Write down to even like how their, you know, employees interact with one
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  another with ease and calm and you know, how you're greeted at a store
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  should feel welcoming and calming and easy every moment of their brand.
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  And that's when you know you got something good.
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  It was a hard sell when I said we had to do, make
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  some bold moves and why their relationship was key.
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  'cause it mattered because we had to sell
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  them a more, this was more than just a logo.
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  And not that the logo isn't important, but it's one element of a
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  bigger, I think, initiative that we knew we could help them solve.
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  Right?
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  And so.
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  I love that it became everything for their brand.
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  Yeah.
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  That's what you really want out of a, a good brand is
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  for it to carry through to everything that you create,
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  everything that you're doing, everything that you're saying.
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  If it doesn't, then you've, you've failed, I think,
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  in some way to really communicate a good brand.
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  The, the creative elements here, obviously the color palette, very relaxing.
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  I like, I personally like the color palette a lot.
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  It very much is my sensibilities as a millennial male.
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  The, the color palette, the font, like, take me through
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  like how you, how you kind of like decided on that.
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  Was that just gut instinct research?
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  Like how did that come.
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  It was a few things.
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  I think traditionally aesthetics can become subjective.
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  What one person says is comforting is maybe not to another.
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  And so to back that up, we do a lot of research on the backend, right?
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  We do excavating, as I call it.
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  We do dig far and wide into the brand's heritage and history and
• 14:03
  what elements such as type and color can maybe still resonate today.
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  What other brands are doing, you know, to ensure that we're carving out
• 14:10
  something that feels distinct and ownable and so that helps us lead to.
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  If you will, like a bucket that not only does those things, but like now
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  what's the calming elements within that kind of silo that we've defined, right?
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  And so from there, it's gotta do those things.
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  It's gotta feel modern, it's gotta feel ownable and distinct.
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  And maybe there's a, a connection to the brand or the brand's history.
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  And that I think really points us into a, an
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  area that makes sense, like it or not, right?
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  Ensures that it exudes those moments of calm.
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  And so we hit on it.
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  And I love that you said that, like as a masculine male, I love it.
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  That's intentional too, of like, we gotta breach.
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  You know, I think historically La-Z-Boy was often seen as like a
• 14:50
  masculine old, you know, grandpa's chair kind of thing, and like.
• 14:54
  Which is fair and like, and there's those moments still matter
• 14:57
  in the brand and it still exists, but like, how can we expand
• 15:00
  that and do and create a palette that felt, I think, a little
• 15:03
  bit more conscientious of both male and feminine moments.
• 15:07
  And so just finding something that bridges that
• 15:09
  and is inclusive was really important for us too.
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  So
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  I think bridging the past and, and trying to keep things modern is always one of
• 15:17
  the keys with a longstanding brand, you gotta, you gotta have those elements of.
• 15:21
  We're still around, we still exist.
• 15:23
  I mean, to be honest, I don't like the old logo
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  and you know, I think it did maybe at the moment, but it did what they wanted.
• 15:29
  It doesn't mean it was what was right, but when we looked at it,
• 15:32
  when we looked at the logo and we looked at the color and you
• 15:35
  think of calm, it didn't do any of those things for us, right?
• 15:38
  It was.
• 15:39
  Corporate blue, which felt cold and sterile.
• 15:42
  The logo was sharp and hard-edged, and again, kind of corporate-y, not distinct.
• 15:48
  The job really kind of was easy, right?
• 15:50
  Like the only, you could only go up.
• 15:52
  But we wanted to do intentionally and, and very thoughtfully.
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  So,
• 15:55
  because that, that logo just feels like one of the
• 15:57
  quintessential like early two thousands logos, like
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  there very much was.
• 16:00
  Yeah,
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  very much in that vein of like just that sharp styling and just
• 16:05
  like a commercial, like we're, we're going for the big box stores.
• 16:09
  Lack the soul though, you know, so we brought it back.
• 16:12
  I'm glad you did.
• 16:13
  So, so what are some ways that you brought back the soul and brought back
• 16:16
  some, maybe some interesting activations or engagements to this project?
• 16:20
  Oh, we did some, we've done some really great work.
• 16:22
  Hopefully I don't trip it up because I, I was in and out of.
• 16:24
  Some of these moments, but I have enough to be dangerous knowledge
• 16:27
  of it, is we really celebrated earned activations early on and it
• 16:31
  enabled us to create some tees, right, to tee up this new brand work.
• 16:36
  And so we are kind of already starting to embed in culture.
• 16:39
  This notion of comfort is coming back to Lazboy.
• 16:42
  And so we created this.
• 16:44
  It was, well, there's a few things, but I'll hit on the decline.
• 16:47
  So yes, a name in itself.
• 16:49
  And we all are aware of the iconic recliner
• 16:52
  that La-Z-Boy is notoriously known for.
• 16:55
  Well, we thought, Hey, like let's give moments to people.
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  Let's celebrate this notion of in culture at the moment, it was very kind
• 17:02
  of big of what was once FOMO now became jomo, the joy of missing out.
• 17:06
  Like people are like, can I just like Netflix binge tonight and get a pizza?
• 17:10
  I don't wanna go out to those plans I originally signed up for.
• 17:13
  I just don't wanna do it.
• 17:14
  I wanna hug my dog, you know, I wanna have a good time at home.
• 17:17
  So we created the recliner.
• 17:19
  So it was an AI activated, uh, you could literally, it, what it would do is
• 17:24
  it would send, you could use your phone, and when you recline in the chair, it
• 17:29
  would send actual messages, responses to your friends or whom it may you desire
• 17:35
  that provides these automated declined messages that were kind of just funny.
• 17:40
  It built character into the brand too.
• 17:41
  Lazboy is like.
• 17:43
  We try not to take ourselves too seriously too at the same time,
• 17:46
  you know, like there's kind of a quirk to us and a funness.
• 17:49
  And so it hit on like all those nodes and it became a little
• 17:52
  teaser of like, we celebrate comfort and it is acceptable to
• 17:56
  be comfortable and to decline chaos in life and just rest.
• 18:00
  So it was a cool moment and that was, I think one great, I think
• 18:04
  additional opportunity, and if you will call it activation that enabled us.
• 18:10
  To, I think, spark the soul of the brand that we were going
• 18:13
  for beyond just identity, but through like experience.
• 18:16
  That's really neat.
• 18:17
  So, so was that like an app?
• 18:18
  It could go get on the app store right now,
• 18:20
  in the moment it was, you know, and, and, and it was a kind of a moment
• 18:24
  in time and to celebrate this new branding initiatives and, and so forth.
• 18:28
  But yeah, it was pretty.
• 18:30
  Yeah, I love activations like that where you get,
• 18:33
  you know, people going, what the heck is this?
• 18:34
  Yeah, it had that, it had that beat.
• 18:37
  That in itself draws attention, you know, it like
• 18:39
  earns attention of just like, what is going on here?
• 18:42
  Can I get that chair?
• 18:43
  And we delivered some to people too, like whoever submitted the best messages,
• 18:47
  we, we provided them with a lazyboy as well, so it was like a bonus, right?
• 18:51
  Who doesn't want that?
• 18:52
  So yeah, it was kind of a, a win-win for a lot,
• 18:54
  a lot of folks, including obviously the brand.
• 18:57
  Yeah, I feel like I missed out on that campaign.
• 18:59
  Now I'm, I'm very sad to, sad to have missed it, but that's, that's cool.
• 19:02
  That's also a way I think that was using ai.
• 19:04
  Is that, is that
• 19:05
  correct?
• 19:06
  Yeah.
• 19:06
  We used AI and a lot of other techie things that my brain can't
• 19:09
  comprehend so much, but hey, the end result was pretty fantastic.
• 19:13
  So.
• 19:14
  Yeah.
• 19:14
  So like as, as you created this change, did you run up against
• 19:18
  any pushback or any, anybody being resistant to the change?
• 19:22
  Because they're like, we've had this last logo since 20 Yes.
• 19:24
  You know, 2003 and
• 19:26
  it was the logo out of all the things, you know, 'cause it's, it, it's
• 19:31
  everywhere and it takes a lot of money as we know, a lot of dollar bills.
• 19:34
  To put that logo on exterior signage and every bit of furniture.
• 19:39
  And in a time right now where like, brands
• 19:41
  have launched and it didn't always go so well.
• 19:44
  You know, think Crate and Barrel recent,
• 19:46
  Jaguar, like, they had a lot of pushback.
• 19:49
  People missed like the, the original they had,
• 19:53
  you know, uh, an emotional at attachment to it.
• 19:55
  And so it was top of mind of like, how do we ensure
• 19:59
  that when we launch this logo, we are doing it right.
• 20:03
  It is the right move.
• 20:05
  We still con continue with the people that are loyal
• 20:08
  to us and love our brand, but bring in net new.
• 20:11
  So it was nerve wracking.
• 20:13
  That's again why the relationship was so powerful.
• 20:15
  Like we talked through it together, found solutions together.
• 20:19
  It worked out eons enabling us to, I think, feel confident
• 20:22
  in launching it and putting it out there in the world.
• 20:25
  So we'll see.
• 20:27
  So far so good.
• 20:28
  That's good.
• 20:29
  I mean, the, the good thing is you weren't doing anything that was like.
• 20:32
  At least by most people's broad perception would not be considered political.
• 20:37
  And I think like things like Cracker Barrel,
• 20:39
  it's a global brand too, you know?
• 20:40
  And so like how does that, every little detail that we
• 20:43
  did work culturally across, across the globe, and so.
• 20:48
  Everything was just, like I said, very intentional and thoughtful and a little
• 20:51
  nerve wracking, but you're not doing something right if you're not scared.
• 20:55
  I mean, that's, uh, what everyone says and, and I believe it.
• 20:58
  So as, as we, as we look at this, what have been some things,
• 21:01
  like what have been the results of this campaign so far?
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• 21:47
  I wish I had the numbers in front of me, Chris.
• 21:49
  But I do know that stock shares have gone up, which is great.
• 21:53
  That's always a good indicator of a successful
• 21:55
  brand, gotten more people in stores, right?
• 21:58
  And so I think that's the biggest, that's, that was number one success
• 22:02
  metrics for us of like, how do we ensure we don't lose fans and we gain more.
• 22:06
  And so the more people that we could get, the more foot
• 22:08
  traffic we could get while it was offline or online.
• 22:11
  In store or digitally, we knew that we
• 22:13
  were doing something good and, and we did.
• 22:15
  And so the numbers are up, which to me is the number one success.
• 22:19
  Uh, that's all we can ask for, to continue
• 22:21
  that brand loyalty, not lose that loyalty.
• 22:24
  So win-win, we did.
• 22:26
  And we're still doing,
• 22:27
  that's always a good, good result when you've got
• 22:29
  things going the right way and people are happy.
• 22:33
  It worked.
• 22:33
  It worked.
• 22:34
  I'm like, huh, ah, look at that.
• 22:36
  See, the odd place is still living with me.
• 22:38
  It worked.
• 22:39
  Ah,
• 22:41
  well, that's great.
• 22:42
  So what, what have you personally learned through this project?
• 22:45
  What would you say?
• 22:45
  This was the takeaway for me.
• 22:47
  This is something that I know I'll, I'll always
• 22:49
  carry with me as a result of this campaign.
• 22:51
  Look at this.
• 22:52
  We keep going back to relationships.
• 22:54
  That was the greatest learning for me was how important it is
• 22:59
  to have that backbone when doing something so risky, so new.
• 23:03
  And for a brand that has such history was like, how do I ensure
• 23:07
  that we're holding hands, we're doing it together, we're doing
• 23:10
  the dance, you know, and, and you need a party to do that.
• 23:13
  And so.
• 23:13
  I know it seems like I'm on a, a repeat,
• 23:15
  but I think that was the biggest learning.
• 23:17
  No, I, I would agree.
• 23:18
  I mean, personal relationships are really key.
• 23:21
  Even in my own business right now, I'm finding that like I chose
• 23:25
  to go to New York City and visit some clients and, and even try to
• 23:28
  make inroads with new relationships with people at a conference.
• 23:31
  And like every time I go, I'm reminded, oh
• 23:33
  yeah, this is why I get out and meet people.
• 23:36
  Because if I didn't, people wouldn't know who we are and
• 23:39
  I wouldn't have that trust because they don't know me.
• 23:42
  They just know me online.
• 23:44
  Amen.
• 23:44
  Absolutely.
• 23:45
  I mean, that's what it's all about.
• 23:46
  Like, just like that interaction.
• 23:49
  And also, you know, and this may seem like a cliche response, but it's just
• 23:52
  another reinforcement of it, of like, do your research, do some digging.
• 23:56
  Uh, you know, we, we went to the corporate headquarters.
• 23:59
  We went through many different retail spaces.
• 24:02
  We talked to people, we read the books.
• 24:05
  You know, LAZBOYs got a book.
• 24:06
  Which is great.
• 24:07
  That's when you know you're iconic, right?
• 24:09
  We sat in the furniture, we experimented with it and like you really
• 24:14
  have to embed yourself in where they've been, to know where you're going.
• 24:17
  You know, I think everyone says that and it's true.
• 24:19
  And we did that and we do that every time.
• 24:21
  And so I think it just reinforces because we did.
• 24:24
  So I think to an extreme this time reinforces I think
• 24:28
  the benefit of that it paid off, uh, tremendously.
• 24:31
  As we talk about the future, as we, as we look towards the future now, kind
• 24:34
  of stepping away from just the La-Z-Boy campaign and maybe maybe bringing in
• 24:37
  some of your experience from having worked on that, you know, what is top of
• 24:41
  mind as you look at the future, as you've, as you've been through this project.
• 24:44
  I know some AI was used and technology was used, but what do you kind
• 24:48
  see as like the future of branding and kind of where we're at right now?
• 24:51
  I love that question.
• 24:53
  It's something I'm like really digging into right now.
• 24:56
  The world has shifted.
• 24:57
  Brands are demanding more and more today than they were yesterday.
• 25:00
  It's not about the campaign anymore.
• 25:03
  It's it is.
• 25:04
  It's, but it's, and, and so it's about every experience
• 25:07
  of the brand and what is that system behind it?
• 25:10
  What is that operating system that enables brands
• 25:13
  to show up in all these new spaces in places?
• 25:16
  Back in the day, it was the broadcast spot.
• 25:19
  The digital didn't exist, social didn't
• 25:21
  exist, and maybe you ran a few print pieces.
• 25:23
  But now it's, it's, it shows up in retail, it shows up
• 25:26
  online, it shows up in social, it shows up with influencers,
• 25:30
  earned activations like the decliner and it's everywhere.
• 25:33
  And if these tentacles are just moving around and if you don't
• 25:36
  have a system in the background that enables these experiences.
• 25:40
  To show up consistently on brand and distinctly
• 25:45
  all these Lees distinctly, uniquely, consistently.
• 25:48
  If you don't have that, you're just gonna eventually become fragmented.
• 25:53
  You're gonna lose the brand trust.
• 25:55
  People are not gonna recognize you in all these moments.
• 25:58
  You know, and so it just becomes vital to give, if you will, that
• 26:01
  playbook right, like that in inside the Intel inside, as they always say.
• 26:06
  One of my coworkers always says that, right?
• 26:08
  Like, that enables the brands.
• 26:10
  It, it makes it easy.
• 26:12
  I know what to do in these moments.
• 26:13
  I know how the brand needs to behave, I know how it needs to act.
• 26:16
  And design is really that thinking behind it
• 26:19
  that ensures we're, you know, we're governing it.
• 26:21
  To ensure that things show up accurately.
• 26:23
  And so I think brand and design is becoming more and more important
• 26:27
  in just marketing in general than it ever has before, to ensure
• 26:32
  that as this world becomes more chaotic, there's a system to it.
• 26:36
  And I think La-Z-Boy is a prime example of that, right?
• 26:39
  And as I always mentioned, it became more than a logo.
• 26:42
  It became how is this brand showing up through every unique lens
• 26:45
  and how people interact with it and every different space in place.
• 26:48
  Well, we created that system, right?
• 26:50
  We didn't just create a logo, we created the system.
• 26:52
  We, we talked about how the brand needs to feel, how it even needs to sound.
• 26:56
  We even came up with a secret, uh, not a secret, uh, a branded scent.
• 27:00
  For when people walk into the spaces, like how should it smell bonkers?
• 27:04
  How does the logo move?
• 27:05
  How do we animate elements?
• 27:07
  You know, what does our photography look like?
• 27:09
  How do our products show up?
• 27:10
  So yeah, design, design, design, lead by design is my motto for this year.
• 27:16
  So thank you for that question.
• 27:17
  Yeah.
• 27:17
  I'm really passionate about If you couldn't tell.
• 27:19
  Yeah, no, that's, that's really neat.
• 27:21
  And I, I think you bring up a good point too, because like.
• 27:24
  As I look at like what's going on in AI right now,
• 27:26
  everybody's like, how do we know if something's real or not?
• 27:29
  And when it comes to a brand, it really comes down to their branding.
• 27:33
  It's their
• 27:33
  digital comes down to the soul.
• 27:35
  What is the heart inside?
• 27:36
  Exactly.
• 27:37
  I love ai.
• 27:38
  First of all.
• 27:38
  I am, I'm all for it.
• 27:40
  But I think what it needs most still is that that.
• 27:44
  That humanity, that attention to detail design does so well at that, right?
• 27:50
  Like design provides the soul to the tech behind AI and all
• 27:54
  the more reason to lead by design today than ever before.
• 27:57
  So.
• 27:58
  It helps us move at quicker speeds, which I love.
• 28:01
  My DHD needs it in life.
• 28:03
  You know, it helps me, I think, look down different avenues
• 28:06
  that maybe I would've never have gotten to at the time.
• 28:09
  We usually have and crack unique in different codes.
• 28:12
  You know, it helps me wear more hats, but at the end of the day, it
• 28:15
  still needs my, my brain power, but more importantly, my soul and
• 28:18
  my heart to ensure the brand is intact and crafted intentionally.
• 28:23
  And I mean, I think at the end of the day too, like that's what we find.
• 28:26
  What I have found and observed over the last year has been this push
• 28:30
  and pull between the marketing agencies wanting to push AI because
• 28:34
  it saves us time and it makes things easier and accelerates things.
• 28:38
  And then the actual consumer going, we don't want it to look
• 28:41
  like a, at least we don't want it to think or know it's ai.
• 28:44
  They want real
• 28:44
  and they want authentic.
• 28:45
  They want authenticity.
• 28:46
  Yeah.
• 28:47
  That still takes crafting and a human, the
• 28:49
  human quality behind it, which is great.
• 28:52
  I, you know, and we, we need both.
• 28:53
  And so it's exciting.
• 28:55
  It's an interesting time.
• 28:56
  And to see how people, you know, leverage it uniquely, uh, is interesting.
• 29:00
  Always still.
• 29:01
  So only the future will tell
• 29:03
  do, yeah.
• 29:04
  We, we will find out in a year or so where we're at.
• 29:07
  It's a fascinating topic for sure.
• 29:09
  So I could talk about that for days.
• 29:11
  Yeah.
• 29:11
  We'll have to get a beer and, because I could go on and on, but it's exciting.
• 29:15
  I'm excited about the tools.
• 29:17
  And, and you know what's funny too is like, I think get to places.
• 29:21
  That I wouldn't have gotten before because of the speed.
• 29:24
  You know, I can use it so much for research and I get there faster.
• 29:28
  I can use it for like just spitting out unique different concepts
• 29:31
  or words or ideas so I can get to something better quicker.
• 29:35
  That's, to me, is what I think is special and I, I hope
• 29:37
  people use it because I think we'll start to see something
• 29:40
  really special and different in the world because of that.
• 29:42
  You know, I hope.
• 29:44
  I hope
• 29:44
  there's fringes of, like, I, I've spent a lot of time paying
• 29:47
  attention to like, what's happening in the AI media world, so
• 29:50
  like what's happening with video, what's happening with audio.
• 29:53
  My benchmark for the last few years has been
• 29:56
  the Balenciaga videos, the AI Balenciaga videos.
• 30:00
  I don't know if you've ever seen these.
• 30:02
  They did a Harry Potter one that's really famous.
• 30:05
  Yeah, I think I know it.
• 30:06
  I, I think I'm with you.
• 30:07
  They, they're literally structuring like small trailers that are in.
• 30:11
  Insane.
• 30:12
  Yeah.
• 30:12
  Yeah.
• 30:12
  They, they look like photo shoots and they're all like buffed up.
• 30:16
  It's got people all buzzed up because they're
• 30:19
  like, oh my God, is it gonna take all these jobs?
• 30:21
  Or is, I don't know.
• 30:22
  But the guy who did like the original viral Balenciaga
• 30:25
  video three years ago just released a new version of the
• 30:27
  Harry Potter Balenciaga video, and it's like a movie.
• 30:31
  I know.
• 30:32
  It's crazy.
• 30:33
  It's insane and it's still not there, but I'll include
• 30:37
  some links to that for people that wanna see it.
• 30:39
  'cause that, that's just a fascinating case study for me.
• 30:43
  But yeah, it's wild where we're getting to
• 30:46
  changing the world.
• 30:47
  It is, it is.
• 30:48
  So as far as brands go, I always like to wrap with this question
• 30:53
  and that is, what brand do you admire the most right now?
• 30:56
  Oh boy.
• 30:57
  I knew this question was coming and I hate this
• 30:59
  question purely because I, I, I have so many different.
• 31:04
  Loves of so many brands.
• 31:05
  I don't have one.
• 31:06
  You know, it's like the the age old question, what's your favorite movie?
• 31:09
  But you know, what I really get excited about is not necessarily products.
• 31:13
  You know, you could ask me and I'd be like, oh, of course Nike
• 31:15
  and Apple and they're all doing great things Target, you know?
• 31:19
  But what I really get excited is when people are able to take the
• 31:22
  philosophy of branding and apply it to like experiences or people.
• 31:26
  Or, uh, I'm a big sports fan.
• 31:28
  Like how does that get operationalized into
• 31:30
  fandom and ex, you know, sports experiences?
• 31:32
  You know, you think of the likes of like Taylor Swift, talk
• 31:34
  about a genius brand, you know, like her or not, when you look
• 31:38
  at every moment and experience of her brand has been thoughtfully
• 31:41
  curated and crafted right down to like the red lipstick.
• 31:44
  You know, and how it connects and symbolizes her red album and it became a
• 31:49
  whole era and it's bonkers to me and, and right down to stage setting and her
• 31:53
  shows and how it all kind of becomes, this one collective system is phenomenal.
• 31:59
  You know, you think of Michael Jackson Love and Rain.
• 32:01
  I'm like, I'm gonna go there though of like, uh, iconic brand.
• 32:05
  Right, like he had an iconic, distinct voice.
• 32:08
  He had an iconic, distinct way he moved,
• 32:11
  which was his dancing and his behaviors.
• 32:13
  Well, those were something to be noted about.
• 32:16
  He had places that were magical.
• 32:17
  Never, never land.
• 32:18
  You know, some might not say magical now, but.
• 32:21
  I don't know.
• 32:22
  That's always really interesting to me, like right, like
• 32:24
  how do you codify yourself as a brand versus like apply
• 32:28
  it to products, which are just traditional methods.
• 32:30
  So you look at, I'm a big Vikings fan, skull Bikes, Minnesota here.
• 32:35
  You know, if you go to a game.
• 32:37
  And you sit in that, the stadium, every experience is so thoughtful
• 32:42
  from, from the moment you enter the plaza, the events and
• 32:45
  activations that are happening that celebrate the Scandinavian
• 32:49
  roots, uh, the Vikings, you know, coming over from Norway.
• 32:53
  How it applies to some crazy experiences when you're in the stadium.
• 32:57
  They actually have snow falling to mimic kind of the
• 32:59
  cold arctic nature of Scandinavia and they got flames and
• 33:04
  dragons and the videos they make and their social content.
• 33:08
  It's pretty dope.
• 33:09
  It's kind of cool it see it come to life.
• 33:12
  So like I said, I'm, I'm really into, in,
• 33:14
  into brands that have that I think collective.
• 33:18
  Uh, you could call it brand world or whatever you wanna
• 33:20
  call it, but like every facet of their brand shows up really
• 33:24
  distinctly and uniquely, and then everything is considered.
• 33:27
  So
• 33:28
  yeah, that, that attention to detail just always blows me away.
• 33:31
  Yeah, I, I see it a lot in like the, like I'm big into F1 right now, so like
• 33:36
  Formula One does a really good job with that kind of attention to detail.
• 33:40
  Been really
• 33:40
  recently, they're really kind of taken off, so
• 33:43
  yeah.
• 33:43
  Awesome.
• 33:44
  Dq, thank you so much for being on the podcast.
• 33:47
  I'd love to come back someday even been a good time
• 33:49
  open invitation.
• 33:50
  We'll, we'll make sure it happens.
• 33:52
  Where can people connect with you?
• 33:53
  Where can they learn more about Cole McVey?
• 33:55
  Oh, cole mcvey.com.
• 33:57
  We have a great social channel with a great team that puts
• 34:00
  great, funny content on there where you can learn more about us.
• 34:03
  I can provide you a URL direct link to some of my
• 34:06
  channels if people wanna learn more, interact with me.
• 34:09
  But yeah.
• 34:10
  That's the gist.
• 34:11
  I'm around and available.
• 34:12
  I love to talk.
• 34:13
  I talk.
• 34:14
  I, I'm a talker.
• 34:15
  I'm a chatty Kathy, and I love design, so hit me up.
• 34:18
  I will do.
• 34:19
  Will do.
• 34:20
  Alrighty, will do.
• 34:20
  Keith, thank you for being on the
• 34:21
  podcast.
• 34:22
  Yeah.
• 34:22
  Best of luck, bud.
• 34:23
  This was great.
• 34:24
  Thanks for having me.
• 34:26
  Thanks for checking out this episode of We Built This Brand.
• 34:28
  Don't forget to like and subscribe on your player of choice.
• 34:31
  You can also keep up with the podcast on we built this brand.com.
• 34:35
  If you like this episode, please give the podcast a five star review and make
• 34:39
  sure to tell all your friends about it so we can continue to build this brand.