As a creative director you need a myriad of things to align to make great work. An awesome client product certainly helps. An awesome product and a good creative process are even sweeter. But if you have both of those things going for you and the client doesn’t trust you you’ll likely end up frustrated, asking yourself “what if” as you close the bar on a Monday night. This is not one of those instances. This is a look at rebranding, through the eyes of the client.

It was in the summer of 2010 that I was introduced to Hiro Leung and Song Kim, owners and operators of Imagin Asia Restaurant Management Group based in Gainesville, Florida. In 2005 they opened Rolls’n Bowls, a restaurant where you can build your own sushi roll or rice bowl. It was met with great success and Hiro and Song realized there was an opportunity for expansion. It was soon after that, that our relationship began.

STEVE: Let’s take a step back in time for a minute. Tell us how the concept of building your own sushi roll came to fruition?

HIRO: It was a typical day at our other restaurant Dragonfly where one or two hour waits were the norm and we would go through crazy amounts of sushi rolls on any given day.  Getting to the restaurant at 10 in the morning and not leaving till midnight was part of our lives. After our busy shifts, we would usually end up eating whatever was left over as our family meal by creating our own roll or bowl. Mostly everything was gone by then so we had to be creative in making what was left into a meal. Ironically, we noticed that what we ate was really good so we opened up our initial QSR (quick service restaurant) concept that revolved around our family meal.  Build your own roll or bowl.

At what point in the restaurant’s existence did you realize that the concept was something special?

We usually travel around the Country looking for inspiration and we realized that we could not find anything like this. Furthermore, we have guests that not only ate our food but also wanted to open up their own store in their hometown.

Rolls’n Bowls was succeeding. Why was there a desire to rebrand the restaurant?

We knew that with the help of a great agency we could take our concept national. It’s like taking something that was good and making it great. The agency was able to tie and strengthen our brand so that we can be ready for our national expansion.

How does a quick service Japanese restaurant in Florida end up hooking-up with a branding agency in Philly?

Before we engaged in a full rebranding, we spent literally half a year looking for the right partners. I love Florida, but I have to say we don’t have the creative talent that other larger cites have and 160over90 was no exception. From the attitude, client experience and creativity we knew 160over90 was the one we wanted to work with. The question was did they want to work for a small growing concept such as ours. We used the beautiful weather and beaches to lure them.

Describe the rebranding process?

The Agency really took a huge dive and studied the market before suggesting any rebranding to us. We appreciated the many hours spent on the discovery process to not only get to know us but to also study the competitive landscape.

Inside Rolls'n Bowls

Getting to know the Rolls'n Bowls staff

Was there anything you were nervous about?

Definitely! We had a restaurant that was already humming and working. We didn’t want the Agency to just rebrand for rebranding sake. We needed them to make our restaurant better. Changing the “identity” was the most nerve racking moment. It had to not only sound right but also capture what we did well and elevate it to another level.

Describe the brand direction you selected. How did you know it was right for you?

The Agency had showed us two great directions, which made the decision very hard but after thinking in terms of which idea had the best long-term direction and the most authentic feel, it was easy.

After the brand direction was established we created a new name for you. Tell us about Yume Ume?

The name fits what we do and it has so much potential. It has subliminal message as well as a strong meaning. Our name is about creativity, fun, unique, fresh and intelligent. In Japanese it means delicious dream.

How would you describe the experience at a Yume Ume? How does the brand direction inform it?

The experience at Yume Ume is about dining out with personal expression focusing on the creative nature of the product. It is organic and illustrative celebrating imagination by highlighting the thrill of great slow food made fast.

What is your favorite piece of brand expression that has been created?

There are so many pieces to choose from but my favorite piece is the copy for our to-go container.  “Let’s go back to…your place”. It is so intimate, fun and emotional. Exactly what dining at Yume Ume is all about!

When is Philly going to get a Yume Ume?

Soon…very soon. If you’re reading this and would like to partner up. Come and check us out!

See more of our Yume Ume work here.

The following story is about Mike the headless chicken or also known as Miracle Mike. A Wyandotte chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off. Yes, it lived for 18 more month after its head had been cut off with an ax in 1945 by owner and farmer Lloyd Olsen in a little American town called Fruita in Colorado, USA. First it was believed to be a hoax but not long after it hit the news it became clear that it was indeed strange reality. So what happened.

Expecting his mother in law for a visit on September 10th 1945, good old Lloyd went out to slaughter a few chicken. He knew his mother in law especially enjoyed eating the neck therefore he wanted to keep as much of it as possible. The first doomed chicken in line was a rooster named Mike. Once separated from his head, Mike ran off, still alive. Knowing that this is not abnormal Lloyd moved on paying attention to get the job done with the other chicken. But, damn Mike didn’t die and even after spending a night in a box to keep his disturbing appearance away from his mother in law Mike was as lively as ever. Now being intrigued for how much longer that poor rooster could survive Lloyd started feeding him with a pipette. After a week he wanted to know what the hell was going on and drove Mike 300 miles to the University of Utah.

There doctors there realized that Lloyd had chopped off the head but he had missed a jugular vein and most of the brain stem. And on top of it a blood cloth prevented that poor Mike didn’t bleed to death. With the attention Mike had gotten within a week alone in Fruita Lloyd and his wife Clara figured they could probably make a buck or two with the headless creature and started traveling the country. Mike became famous and was featured in magazines such as “Time” and “Life”. However, Mike’s career came to a sudden stop at a motel in Phoenix sometimes in March 1947 on their way back from a tour. Dealing with a severed trachea Mike couldn’t get enough air and choked to death in the middle of the night.

While Mike’s fame faded shortly after his death his spirit was awakened in by Fruita’s chamber of commerce sometimes in 1999 when looking for a hook to draw tourists attention. Now why did I read about this on a Friday morning in a German newspaper. Because thousands of tourists from around the world celebrate every year in the 3rd week of May the “Mike the Headless Chicken Day”. So, every looked for a weird event to attend? Get yourself out to Fruita, Colorado for the 2012 “Mike the Headless Chicken Day”. Find more information about it here: Fruita, Mike, “Mike the Headless Chicken Day”.

Loyola Sophomore/Junior Search Piece, CommunicationArts Design Annual

Loyola University Maryland School of Education Viewbook, CommunicationArts Design Annual

Wheeling Jesuit University, HOW Magazine Design Annual

As a Clevelander living away from home, news like that of LeBron leaving town may hurt, but not as deep as the news that Cleveland’s own Harvey Pekar passed away yesterday. I was prepared to write some heartfelt account of what Harvey meant to me and to my city, until I found this post from Anthony Bourdain. It’s brilliant. Enough said. I hope your heart will be as touched as mine was. Oh— and the image is from a school project of mine from Kent State that has never seen the light of day, until now. I felt it was appropriate.

The Communication Arts Design Annual 51 (September/October issue) will feature two of our favorite Loyola University Maryland pieces, the Sophomore/Junior Search Piece, which is printed on newsprint and the School of Education Viewbook. There’s been a lot of interest in the newsprint piece so we’ve posted more images after the jump for your viewing pleasure…

Hey, remember that movie Space Camp, where the kids get accidentally launched into space? Well, I came close to that cinematic glory on my recent vacation to Florida, when I went to (watch) the Space Shuttle Atlantis launch in Cape Canaveral.

It was the perfect experience for an ex-Space Camp Nerd-turned-writer, and a sad send-off to the space program. Needless to say, it was an incredible day. The viewing area was set up about 6 miles away from the Cape Canaveral launch site at the Kennedy Space Center, so we entertained ourselves with Astronaut Ice Cream, flight simulators and IMAX movies about the Hubble Telescope while we waited for the countdown. There was also a “Rocket Park” filled with to-scale models of nearly all the aircrafts throughout NASA’s history, including a replica of the Space Shuttle Atlantis, as well as one of the Mercury capsule, Freedom 7, that sent Alan Shepard to space in a compartment about the size of a bathtub. (FACT: did you know the outside of the space shuttle is made out of silica tile that can be safely handled at nearly 2000 degrees Farenheit, only ten seconds after removal from a high temperature oven?)

The launch itself was really impressive, and the day was so clear that we not only got a great view of the shuttle as it went up, but also got a glimpse of the external fuel tank as it fell off the shuttle, and the after-burners diminishing into space. It was pretty cool to be able to simultaneously watch the flight video on a large flat screen, hear expert commentary, and watch the actual shuttle taking flight. NASA has obviously created many checks, balances, and procedures that go into such a large, complex, and carefully choreographed production. Enjoy some of my own photos of the venue and the launch below. (The shuttle photos were taken with a telephoto lens–click on them to get a larger resolution.) Or for some really breathtaking ones of liftoff, check out this photo gallery.

I have to say, even as I get older, space exploration (like dinosaurs and costume parties) really doesn’t get any less mind-blowingly awesome.

The Launch:

This screen showed the different steps to Countdown, and then video feed of the launch:

it’s like Woodstock for aerospace afficionados:

Zoomed out photo of the stream of smoke:

The Venue:

“Astronauts” attached the roof of the Kennedy Space Center:

The Rocket Park:

To give you a sense of the size of these rocket boosters:

In case you’re not aware, on May 4th, 1970, four students were killed and nine others injured by Ohio National Guardsmen who were sent to break-up the Vietnam protests that a day earlier resulted in the arson of the ROTC building. I really cannot imagine what that day must have been like, but remember my first May 4th, and it definitely seemed eerily similar to the events so many years ago. I was in Kinko’s all day from early in the morning to the afternoon trying to get my work finished that was due the next day. (In Kent’s design program, you do everything by hand with photocopiers until you somehow keep your sanity and are rewarded with the ability to finally use a computer your junior year). I was focused on leading, kerning, erasing and memorizing all the moves to make the photocopier create the perfect comp for hours. So when I stepped out from the dismal grey interior and gentle sounds of Muzak to get some lunch, you can imagine how startled I was when I opened the door to see the scenes of a riot right outside. There were police in full riot gear everywhere on the front of campus, mounted police on horses, and empty buses ready to be loaded with protesters blocking several intersections and two black helicopters circling campus. I could see smoke and hear sirens and many voices chanting in unison. Protests had gotten out of control and several people were arrested, but thankfully nothing more serious than that. I spent the rest of the day in studio getting things ready to turn in the next morning. At the time, I felt like I had missed out on something big. And although I also missed the boat by several decades for a real counterculture revolution, I’m truly thankful my time at Kent wasn’t touched with such loss especially since more recent tragedies of another kind like Columbine or Virginia Tech.

There’s a great slide show of images from May 4th on NPR’s site here, I grabbed a few to share below.
Source: Photos courtesy John Filo and Kent State University
Credit: Produced by M.L. Schultze/WKSU

I am a cyclist and a fervent music fan. So you can imagine how excited I was a couple weeks ago when David Byrne stopped by Philly to talk about how bicycling has helped transform the urban experience. Unfortunately, no  music jams or giant-suit wearing were involved. But, all that bike talk was just as stimulating for the noggin.For those of you who aren’t aware, Mr. Byrne has been a cyclist for the past 20 years (he started back when biking wasn’t a cool or even socially-accepted mode of transportation). His recent book, Bicycle Diaries, chronicles the observations and insights he collected from his experiences biking in cities around the globe. (It’s one of his favorite things to do during his downtime on tour.) I received the book at our agency’s secret santa gift exchange, and have been thinking a lot about how cycling has changed the way I interact with our fair city, and how the city (powers that be/motorists/pedestrians) has responded to the growing popularity of urban biking.

The whole idea of bike-person-city interaction is also really relevant to my own experience in Philadelphia. As a car-worshiping Midwest transplant, I felt isolated and intimidated by the city during my first months here–until I bought my SE Lager, I finally made the switch after test-riding a friend’s bike, and getting my first taste of freedom. It made me realize how much more quickly I could get around–and get a feel for–my new city.

Now I’m hooked. My favorite time to ride is after a late night at the office when my brain can take a breather, I feel the wind on my face, and I become human once again. Second to that feeling of midnight euphoria, I also love my morning commute to work, where I pass through several different neighborhoods, each with its own distinct personality. Part of Philly’s charm is that neighborhoods can change so drastically from block to block. It’s great to see all of the funny interactions that neighbors and strangers alike have when they bump into one another on the sidewalks, sharing greetings and laughs. I also love the random snippets of conversation that I sometimes pick up out of context (it feels like I’m experiencing in real-time one long take in a Wes Anderson movie).

I’m not alone out there either. At the forum I learned that almost 10,000 Philadelphians bike to work, a higher percentage than in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago or D.C. This makes sense, I guess, since about half of our creative department gets here on two wheels.

It will be interesting to see how the city changes as more people start riding bikes in the next couple of years. From the way the David Byrne discussion went, it seems like Philly has a promising future to become the most bike friendly city in America. We’ll see, but with the recent win of the $17.2 million Tiger grant, we might be well on our way.

Photography was prohibited at the event, but I was able to snap some quick shots of the beautiful film montage that played on a loop beforehand as we waited in the crowd. It was composed of bicycle scenes from the movies that portrayed how much fun it is to bike. I thought it was a nice way to start the night and complimented  the speakers’ talks which focused heavily on how cities have been planned, how we get around them, and how these factors ultimately affect the city dweller’s everyday life. Scroll down to see if you can name that movie or television show.

Odds and Ends from the Forum:

Extremely Interesting Books Mentioned:

The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs, The Timeless Way of Building by Christopher Alexander

For The Ultra Curious:

The event was officially titled Cities, Bicycles and the Future of Getting Around: A Special Urban Sustainability Forum and was hosted by the Center for Environmental Policy at The Academy of Natural Sciences. Fellow panelists included Ignacio Bunster-Ossa, a landscape architect and urban designer from Wallace Roberts & Todd (WRT),  Alex Doty, Executive Director of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, and Katherine Gajewski, Philadelphia’s Director of Sustainability and implementer of the mayor’s Greenworks initiative.

The end of the year is a big time for lists, and publications, and publications that make lists.  It’s kind of like VH1, except instead of Carrot Top commenting on MC Hammer’s pants or how hot Brooke Shields was in the 1981 Calvin Klein campaign, we have a tweed-coated columnist telling us about the year’s best…everything.

Although I normally skim over these lists skeptically (did Adventureland REALLY make it onto a list for the ten best movies of the decade?), I was blown away by the New York Times Magazine’s’ “9th Annual Year in Ideas” list. It’s full of discoveries that are cool (face-detecting digital advertisements that move and respond to passers-by), relevant (a beer bottle is more effective at cracking the human skull if it’s empty, rather than full), and futuristic (the development of an ethical robot; a Google algorithm applied to the analysis of animal extinction). From start to finish, the list offers a broad and refreshing look at the innovations that will likely shape the kinds of technological, cultural, social and artistic strides that will be made in 2010.

Oh, and for whoever got my name in the Secret Santa pool, I wouldn’t say no to Ruppy the flourescent dog. (It sure beats my invisible one.)

Here’s a new boutique marketing and media agency that specializes in brand building, athlete management, and PR specifically for the endurance sports market.  Their niche concentration is guided by founder Elisette Carlson’s extensive experience in sports marketing. Prior to founding SMACK! Media, as Director of Marketing for Zoot Sports, Eli helped lead a successful footwear product launch that saw booming sales and received considerable accolades.

Based in San Diego, CA, they sum up their approach best by stating, “with brands and athletes competing fiercely in an already crowded market, SMACK! Media is committed to being the five fingers across the rear to propel your brand forward.”

Paying our west coast friends a visit is as easy as clicking a button: www.smackmedia.com.  Now if only there was a button to experience some of that California sunshine.