Indie agency Joan has rebranded for the second time in five years, this time in an effort to move beyond the energy of its startup roots and produce a holistic identity befitting a more established company.
Joan rebrands to reflect growing agency’s evolution
The new identity retains elements of the old one—such as the sword imagery, a nod to Joan of Arc—but introduces a new design system meant to embody what the female-founded agency stands for today, following its growth into new markets and disciplines.
The identity was created in-house under design lead Anjela Freyja. Joan’s 2019 rebrand was done externally by design shop Sunday Afternoon.
“The last identity was strong, but it wasn’t holistic enough to bring us into this new era,” Freyja said. “The new system really encapsulates the entire company—who we are and where we’re going—in a more meaningful way.”
While the old wordmark was meant to position Joan as sharp, forward thinking and joyful rebellious, the new one aims to capture what the agency said is its richer self-identity today—eight years after its 2016 founding.
The new wordmark is silver instead of white, 3D instead of flat, and looks as though it were forged from liquid metal. This duality, of being liquid yet solid, is meant to capture the multiple sides of Joan’s personality and its client offering—creative yet strategic, artful yet built for business.
“What we liked about liquid metal is it’s malleable, it can change, it can evolve, it can grow, but it’s also a strong and forceful material,” Freyja said. “There’s this softness and also this strongness that I think we need to have as women in the industry.”
The investigation into the agency’s brand also unearthed five adjectives—daring, soulful, relevant, crafted and visionary—that helped frame the process and will define the agency going forward.
“Those really became the hallmarks by which we designed,” said Jaime Robinson, the agency’s co-founder and chief creative officer. “They’re words that have always been emblematic of who we are, but that also define our best work. We want this to be our north star going forward—to always be daring and soulful, which is an important mix, and be well crafted, have some vision, and be culturally relevant.”
The agency, whose clients include eBay Motors, European Wax Center and ZenBusiness, recently expanded to London and into disciplines like design. With that evolution, it was important to codify the agency’s belief system and weave its throughout its entire operation, said Lisa Clunie, co-founder and CEO.
“That word system is so important,” she said. “In the past we had a logo, which is befitting of a creative boutique that’s small and exciting and new. Now we need something more systemic that runs through every aspect of the way we do business. It allows us to scale, to focus, to retain our strength—our creative heart—but also be more strategically driven. It feels like growing up.”
The identity is largely monochromatic, but will have splashes of bold color—which Robinson said is also part of the Joan DNA. “There’s a loudness to it,” she said of the color palette. “We’ve never been a quiet company, and will never be a quiet company.”
The rollout of the identity also includes merch for staff, such as sweaters, jogging pants and bags. The branding will extend to office signage, social media, letterhead, the agency website and more.
One staffer—at a recent party hosted by merch partners Ray’s in New York—embraced the new logo on another level by getting a tattoo of it. “I think the whole design team was like, ‘Oh my God,’” said Robinson.
“With the dissolution of so many famous and historic agency brands lately, there is question: What is the role of an agency brand?” said Clunie. “I think what you’re seeing here is a major belief in the agency brand. There is a real point of view here. Working here is not the same as working at other agencies. We want our people to feel that. You’re doing something different here.”