Brand Building 101
mucca @ WIX MEETUP

About Mucca

mucca
is an award-winning branding firm based
in New York City. We strongly believe in
the balance of strategy and design, both
of which are essential to creating relevant,
authentic brands.

Mucca has worked with a wide range of clients,
including global & international brands such as
Barnes & Noble, Kartell, Rizzoli, Target,
Victoria’s Secret and Waterworks.
come from a wide range of industries and sizes,
including such international brands as Barnes &
Noble, Kartell, Rizzoli, Target, Victoria’s Secret
and Waterworks.
Our clients

Balthazar Target Random House André Balazs New
York Magazine Sant Ambroeus SSG Food Market
Domaine de Canton Brooklyn Fare Rizzoli Harper
Collins Keith McNally Butterfield Market Kartell
Morandi Waterworks Casa Lever Victoria’s Secret
Gracious Home Adobe Matta Barnes & Noble Grand
Central Publishing Gagosian Gallery Presidio Social
Club The Chelsea Pravda Wired Magazine Parc
MenuPages Schiller’s Liquor Bar Patina Restaurant
Group Gracious Home Vanity Fair Runa GQ Roman
and Williams The New York Times GQ Steve Martin

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Local BrandsLocal Brands

BalthazarBalthazar

Gracious Home

Victoria’s Secret

MenuPages

How do you
build a brand?

Forget
about
the logo!

“A brand is the essence of one’s own unique story.
This is as true for personal branding as it is for
business branding. The key, though, is reaching
down and pulling out the authentic, unique you.
Otherwise, your brand will be just a façade.”
- PAUL BIEDERMANN

That’s why we start with
Brand Design Strategy.

A Brand Design Strategy informs,
plans for, and guides a brand’s development.

Starting with Research & Discovery,
we develop a deep understanding of a brand’s:
• unique value proposition benefit of a product or experience

Starting with Research & Discovery,
we develop a deep understanding of a brand’s:
• unique value proposition benefit of a product or experience
• industry trends in customer service, technology, media, etc.

Starting with Research & Discovery,
we develop a deep understanding of a brand’s:
• unique value proposition benefit of a product or experience
• industry trends in customer service, technology, media, etc.
• target audiences demographic research, customer surveys, etc.

Starting with Research & Discovery,
we develop a deep understanding of a brand’s:
• unique value proposition benefit of a product or experience
• industry trends in customer service, technology, media, etc.
• target audiences demographic research, customer surveys, etc.
• competitors competitive analysis, perceptual mapping, etc.

This strategy results in a
Brand Positioning Statement.

A Brand Positioning Statement
is our North Star. It captures a brand’s:
• core offerings

• core offerings
• personality traits, values, and narrative
A Brand Positioning Statement
is our North Star. It captures a brand’s:

• core offerings
• personality traits, values, and narrative
• verbal communication style & distinct messaging
A Brand Positioning Statement
is our North Star. It captures a brand’s:

When we understand the brand intellectually, we can
begin to express it visually and verbally.
BPS
VISUAL LANGUAGE VERBAL LANGUAGE

M A N H A T T A N
B R O O K L Y N
Case Study
Grocery Store
Name TBD

The Brief
BC Food Corp, a lone real estate developer, wanted to
open a gourmet grocery in Brooklyn’s emerging
Downtown neighborhood.

Brand Strategy
Research & Discovery

Findings

Findings
• Shifting demographics
A mix of longtime locals and new residents of upscale condos.

Findings
• Shifting demographics
A mix of longtime locals and new residents of upscale condos.
• Economic growth
$9 billion in new investments in the local economy, including
new residential & commercial units (Barclay’s Center, high rises, etc).

Findings
• Shifting demographics
A mix of longtime locals and new residents of upscale condos.
• Economic growth
$9 billion in new investments in the local economy, including
new residential & commercial units (Barclay’s Center, high rises, etc).
• Increasing competition
These developments attracted Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s,
in addition to other national brands.

The Competition
• Fairway
• Fresh Direct
• Garden of Eden
• Key Foods
• Pathmark
• Peas and Pickles
• Greene Grape Provisions
• Trader Joe’s
• Union Market
• Sahadi’s
• Perelandra
• Whole Foods (projected)
• And many local bodegas

BC Food Corp. Competative Markets 10.08.2008 Mucca Design
QUALITY (high)
QUALITY (low)
PRICE (high)PRICE (low)
BC Food Corp
Perceptual
Mapping

BC Food Corp. Competative Markets 10.08.2008 Mucca Design
SERVICE (high)
SERVICE (low)
SELECTION (high)SELECTION (low)
BC Food Corp
Perceptual
Mapping

Audience Findings

Audience Findings
• Diverse customer base (blue- and white-collar workers,
and residents of upscale condos and brownstones)

Audience Findings
• Diverse customer base (blue- and white-collar workers,
and residents of upscale condos and brownstones)
• Across-the-board Brooklyn pride

Audience Findings
• Diverse customer base (blue- and white-collar workers,
and residents of upscale condos and brownstones)
• Across-the-board Brooklyn pride
• Affection for local bodegas

Audience Findings
• Diverse customer base (blue- and white-collar workers,
and residents of upscale condos and brownstones)
• Across-the-board Brooklyn pride
• Affection for local bodegas
• Appreciation for the colloquial customer service found
at corner shops

Opportunities

Opportunities
• Take advantage of the dramatic revitalization underway
in downtown Brooklyn.

Opportunities
• Take advantage of the dramatic revitalization underway
in downtown Brooklyn.
• Create an authentic Brooklyn shopping experience,
while still providing a one-stop shop for easy shopping.

Opportunities
• Take advantage of the dramatic revitalization underway
in downtown Brooklyn.
• Create an authentic Brooklyn shopping experience,
while still providing a one-stop shop for easy shopping.
• Establish strong early foothold against national
competitors to jumpstart the market’s brand value.

Brand Strategy
Brand Positioning
Statement

[TBD] proudly serves the Brooklyn community,
meeting a diverse range of customers’ culinary
needs, from the everyday to the extraordinary,
with a broad selection of reasonably priced
fresh, packaged, and prepared foods, household
and convenience items, and a level of personal
service usually associated with neighborhood
shopkeepers.
Statement 1

[TBD] proudly serves the Brooklyn community,
meeting the daily needs of a diverse range of
sophisticated modern food shoppers with a
broad selection of fresh, packaged, and
prepared foods, household and specialty items,
and personal service on a par with the city’s
most esteemed culinary destinations.
Statement 2

Authentically Brooklyn
[TBD] proudly serves the Brooklyn community,
meeting a diverse range of customers’ culinary
needs, from the everyday to the extraordinary,
with a broad selection of reasonably priced fresh,
packaged, and prepared foods, household and
convenience items, and a level of personal service
usually associated with neighborhood shopkeepers.
Final

Brand Development
Naming

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical
Hoyt Merchant
local, historical, personable

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical
Hoyt Merchant
local, historical, personable
718 Merchant
urban, modern, authentically Brooklyn

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical
Hoyt Merchant
local, historical, personable
718 Merchant
urban, modern, authentically Brooklyn
Brooklyn Bon Vivant
joyful, worldly, sophisticated

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical
Hoyt Merchant
local, historical, personable
718 Merchant
urban, modern, authentically Brooklyn
Brooklyn Bon Vivant
joyful, worldly, sophisticated
The Corner Shop
local, friendly, informal

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical
Hoyt Merchant
local, historical, personable
718 Merchant
urban, modern, authentically Brooklyn
Brooklyn Bon Vivant
joyful, worldly, sophisticated
The Corner Shop
local, friendly, informal
Brooklyn Purveyors
reliable, resourceful, historical

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical
Hoyt Merchant
local, historical, personable
718 Merchant
urban, modern, authentically Brooklyn
Brooklyn Bon Vivant
joyful, worldly, sophisticated
The Corner Shop
local, friendly, informal
Brooklyn Purveyors
reliable, resourceful, historical
Del Issa
timeless, ownable, referential

Cornerstone Market
solid, reliable, historical
Brooklyn Fare
local, plentiful, traditional
Hoyt Merchant
local, historical, personable
718 Merchant
urban, modern, authentically Brooklyn
Brooklyn Bon Vivant
joyful, worldly, sophisticated
The Corner Shop
local, friendly, informal
Brooklyn Purveyors
reliable, resourceful, historical
Del Issa
timeless, ownable, referential

We have a strong Brand Positioning Statement
and a pitch-perfect name.
So where do we start?
Brooklyn Fare

In this case,
Window Signage

With renovations of the interior space
underway, our client needed to cover all
13 of his storefront’s windows.

With renovations of the interior space
underway, our client needed to cover all
13 of his storefront’s windows.
We saw this as a golden opportunity to
get people excited about Brooklyn Fare —
and get some early feedback from our
target audience in the process.

Passers-by could subscribe for updates by visiting brooklynfare.com.

Delivery Service
We make house calls.
(deliveries that save you time and prevent back strain)
Catering Service
Be a guest at your own party.
(restaurant-caliber catering for homes and offices)
Chocolate Selection
Feeling bittersweet?
(specialty chocolates you’ll want to keep for yourself)

The response was overwhelmingly positive.
Over 3,000 Brooklynites subscribed for updates
within the first week alone.
We were on to something...
Call it Serendipity

Concept Development
Look & Feel

Brand Development
Brand Identity

Since we determined that copy was at
the core of the brand, we realized this
voice needed its own unique typeface.

Custom Typeface

Logotype

Color Palette

Poster Concept

Bringing personal service to the web: customers can email
department experts for advice, recipes, or just to say hello.

Bringing personal service to the web: customers can email
department experts for advice, recipes, or just to say hello.

The Results

Letterhead

What have
we learned?

Takeaways
• A brand is not just a logo.

Takeaways
• A brand is not just a logo.
• No BS. Authenticity above all.

Takeaways
• A brand is not just a logo.
• No BS. Authenticity above all.
• Test your assumptions.

Takeaways
• A brand is not just a logo.
• No BS. Authenticity above all.
• Test your assumptions.
• Always lead with strategy (but please be
obsessed with design).

Takeaways
• A brand is not just a logo.
• No BS. Authenticity above all.
• Test your assumptions.
• Always lead with strategy (but please be
obsessed with design).
• Have fun!

Thank you!
Roberta Ronsivalle, Managing Partner
@muccadesign