PROBLEM
Genesis Art Supply was a small, but well-established art supply store in Chicago with a very successful air brush department and a formerly successful, yet declining online presence in Artsupply.com. Among many services and departments in addition to art supply retail, Genesis was facing the problem of having a weak brand identity, outdated marketing practices, and a need for a general visual overhaul in order to evolve into what owner Richard Goldman wanted to actualize. Mr. Goldman had aspirations of moving the store to larger space. I had advised that the current state of the brand would not help the business survive a very costly, large-scale move.
A NEW IDENTITY
RESEARCH: The first stage in achieving a new identity for Genesis was conducting the research. I needed some time to familiarize myself with both the national and Chicago art supply markets, as well as the different segments of art supply buyers.
Research showed that our top competitors were large, national chains that had a bit of corporate reputation. In order to position our brand accordingly, Genesis needed to create a very personal, caring and involved experience for its shoppers.
In regards to the segments of art supply buyers, research from the International Art Materials Trade Association (NAMTA) showed there were three primary segments. These were professional artists, student artists, and recreational artists. Although professional artists spent the most annually, they only represented 10 percent of the market. Student artists spent the least annually, but had very consistent temporal purchasing habits, however, they too only represented 10 percent of the market. This left recreational artists to make up 80 percent of the market.
Additionally, recreational artists had a unique motivation for creating art and buying art materials. While all artists create art for passion, pleasure, or therapeutic reasons, professionals and students also do it for income or education. They depend on their art for more than just personal development, self-actualization or fun.
For Genesis it made the most sense to target recreational artists with a brand experience that would be truly invested in their development as artists and as people. A positive and personal experience being the most important factor in their choosing one store over another, not just price points alone.
Once the target market was chosen, a strong mission statement was written, and list of core principles was defined, I began writing a full business plan. The business plan was a confidential report used for banks and investors, so I cannot publish it online. If you'd like to see this example of my proposal/report writing, feel free to contact me.
Once the research and brainstorming had produced an outline for the creative translation of the brand, we gave some guidelines to the graphic designer we chose had the ability to carry out what we were looking for. The guidelines were that the logo and style must:
1. have an inspirational image
2. be accessible to artists of all skill levels, including no experience
3. suggest reaching a level of personal acheivement
Through a few rounds of sketches and feedback, our designer delivered.
