Thursday, August 16, 2007

Fresh&Easy in LA




Brought on to work on a new project for a UK company call Tesco for Deutsch Advertising/LA. The new entity is called freshandeasy (yeah, don't ask...) and they have done extensive research to create a venue for high-quality food at reasonable prices and targeting areas that don't have this type of offering available (read the article here). I have to say that the boys from the UK have really done their homework and are working from a pretty well-thought out playbook. I was brought on to help brand the company and lead a team (with the guidance of creative rockstar Ross Patrick) and design over 1100 private label products for the store. The store design also is a contributing factor towards giving F&E an advantage. As more and more consumers are struggling to find more ways to squeeze a few more minutes into their day (...do I really have to brush in the morning?) F&E have created a store with wide aisles and fewer selections to get them in and out as fast as possible and at the same time paying less than what you'd pay at Whole Foods. It's going to change the way we shop and I hope that it's a big hit.

Back in LA



Moved the clan back to LA from NorCal (Napa Valley to be precise) and am still trying to deal with the shock.

Los Angeles, home of the excessive and beautiful. I guess it's a good thing, right? All that great wine and fresh air was making me soft. Looking at it from the proper perspective, I suppose that the time is right to test one's mettle and make a major life shift... Yeah, that's right. What better place to dissect and study brands than Los Angeles the home of "Wanit, Needit and Gotit" Western civilizations perfect embodiment of excessive consumption and consumerism? It makes my heart pound and my wallet wheeze in fear - I'd be lying if I didn't say that I was excited about the possibilities...