Charlie: A Unique Branding Project Out Of The Charles’ Office Culture
Charlie: A bold, digital experience created and curated by individuals united in their commitment to culture.
A Bande à Part
Refusing to let yet another innovative idea end up a casualty in the design graveyard, Charlie emerged as an internal creative initiative as a way to flex creative muscles without client approval or budget constraints. Embracing the initial beginnings of The Charles, Charlie embodies the D.I.Y. & I.D.G.A.F. creative force of their own in-house talent, mixing their original obsession with print editorial with the agency’s the web savvy-intellect. Keeping the family name, Charlie is Charles’s scrappy younger sibling, synonymous with British PSAs of the past and mixed with British and American counterculture.
The Logo
Under the agency’s new moniker, they were not afraid to provoke, to create and to speak freely, not solely as a collective but as a deafening roar. This is why they called tyhe first issue “The We Issue,” as a ferver of creativity.
A New Look
The logo design grew out of the agency’s need to create without boundaries, breaking out of the clean, refined aesthetic of The Charles.
The Manifesto
An Aspirational Urge
The manifesto is declaration of The Charles’ views and values, reclaiming their own voices in a time period where it is imperative to stand and be heard.
The Experience
Each article was individually designed to represent the voice of the writer/designer, making each piece of content bespoke and unique – a true piece of individuality.
In Memoriam
High-quality prints were produced to commemorate each of the seven articles in the inaugural issue, giving people a piece of takeaway art of the digital experience.
The Swag
Out of the digital and into the physical, Charlie a step into the world via the different ephemera created for the Launch Event.
On Display
The Charles opted to turn one of Jacob Burstein’s breathtaking prints into wearable art.
Smile Like You Mean It
Charlie’s logo, the acid house smiley, jumps off the internet and into the streets.
The Correspondence
To help spread the word of the launch event, The Charles, one of the top branding firms in New York, created a short email campaign that invited guests to the space, keeping their interest while pushing the newly-created Charlie Instagram.
The Launch
Out of the internet and into the streets, the debut of Charlie was celebrated at Bar Fortuna in the West Village on December 15th 2016. Guests were invited to experience Charlie through a cocktail hour, punctuated by a surprise spoken word performance reading excerpts from each piece with a specifically-composed violin accompaniment.
Charlie IRL
Specialty snapchat filters were designed for the event so attendees can broadcast their experience at the Charlie Launch event to their networks.
The Legacy
Keeping the spirit since Charlie’s release, The Charles created a new Instagram account as another outlet for inspiration.
#helloitscharlie
Though the next iteration is still a mystery, Charlie gave the Charles an outlet to cut loose. There have been many one-off pieces of content created under the new moniker. The Charles will capture everything in between under its new branded hashtag #helloitscharlie.
