THE BEST OF RETAIL DESIGN AND RETAIL STORES 2008

DDI (Display and Design ideas) Magazine

October 2008

The retail design INFLUENCERS Award was presented to Marc Gobe in Las Vegas. Nominated by their peers, the recipients of this Award are inventing new ways of thinking, stretching perceptions and ultimately changing the realm of the retail design world. They are motivators and risk takers.

Others Influencers award recipients are: Diego Burdi, Charles Sparks, Paco Underhill, Elle Chute and Denny Gerderman, Jack Hruska, Judy Bell, Simon Doonan, James Damian, Giorgio Borruso, Peter Marino, Ron Pompei, Ken Nisch, David Rockwell, Russell Sway, Andrew Mc Quilkin, Christian Davies, Robert Ruscio and William Herbst. more +

THE BUSINESS SHELF

The Midwest Book Review

July 2007

Brands today must shift from commodity status to associations with emotions and inspiration – thus "brandjamming", a metaphor Marc Gobé uses to support the idea that brands which succeed best connect with culture and emotions.

Chapters tell how to encourage collaboration, innovation and intuition to support "brandjamming", drawing on the author’s vast experience as CEO of one of the world’s top ten brand image creation firms. College-level student business will find this real-world perspective goes beyond theory to create a foundation of standards and basic essential to re-vamping the brand association process, making BRANDJAM: HUMANIZING BRANDS THROUGH EMOTIONAL DESIGN a top pick. more +

BRANDING PIONEER URGES CORPORATIONS TO JAZZ UP BRANDING WITH DESIGNS THAT STRIKE CHORDS IN CONSUMER’S HEARTS

The advertising show.com

March 2007

Co-Host Brad Forsythe interviews Marc Gobé, President, CEO and Executive Creative Director, Desgrippes Gobé and author of BrandJam: Humanizing Brands Through Emotional Design. Trained as a designer and a graduate from the Ecole Professionelle de Dessin Industriel in Paris, Marc’s broad experience in packaging, structural design and architecture has attracted a multifaceted mix of apparel, beauty, and consumer brand corporations. He is a frequent speaker at top marketing and design conferences, and has also been invited to address senior managers on Emotional Branding at corporations such as L’Oréal, Montblanc, Motorola, Procter & Gamble, AOL, General Mills, and Peugeot. more +

BOOKS ARE SO EMOTIONAL; WHY AREN’T STORES?

Shelf Awareness

February 2007

Appropriately Marc Gobé, a brand image creator and head of Desgrippes Gobé, saw our story about Daniel Pink's presentation at the ABA's Winter Institute and wanted to add to the discussion about how booksellers can better present themselves and the books they sell.

Gobé has explored issues of design and retail and reaching customers in Emotional Branding and Citizen Brand. His brand-new book, Brandjam: Humanizing Brands Through Emotional Design, continues the theme of explaining "how design puts the face on the brand and creates an irresistible message that connects buyers to the product in a visceral way." more +

INTERVIEW: MARC GOBÉ TELL IT LIKE IT IS

Brand Noise

January 2007

If you ever need a reminder as to why we’re in this business of branding and planning, talk to Marc Gobé of Desgrippes Gobé. He’ll set you straight. A talk with him just before the holidays left me captivated and pondering the meaning of existentialism. I can’t pinpoint how we got on the topic, but it all made sense.

In his latest book, Brandjam, due out this month, Gobé presents an inspired view of the intersection of design, experience and brand. more +

HARNESSING CHAOS AS A TOOL FOR CREATIVITY

Msnbc.com

October 2006

Marc Gobé, a co-owner of the branding consultancy Desgrippes Gobé in New York, says that while creative input from certain team members is well recognized there might be a better way to open the process to more colleagues. One solution, which Gobé writes about in his forthcoming book "Brandjam," says it's critical to get everyone on board in a process of "extreme participation to share ideas" by getting in touch with their emotions. "Information that's shared can become more powerful," says Gobé, adding that the Japanese are well-known for leveraging the creative process. "There is an inner designer in everyone," he says.

Gobé says creating this type of participatory structure is not easy. "The word 'provocative' is not part of the corporate mantra," he says. Companies generally have a dogmatic and systematic approach to problem management. That's why, he suggests a once-a-week event during which "people interface with each other and create a stage" - even using actors to keep things moving - can improve collaboration. more +

GETTING EMOTIONAL WITH… MARC GOBÉ

Design & Emotion.com

April 2006

Marc Gobé is chairman, chief executive officer, and executive creative director of Desgrippes Gobé and Associates. One of the world’s top ten brand image creation firms, DGA specializes in identity, product, packaging, retail, and Web design and over the past 25 years has created breakthrough brand design strategies for Coca-Cola, IBM, Victoria’s Secret, Ann Taylor, Sears, Godiva, Saks, Reebok, Versace, Lancôme, Starbucks, and Gillette. Gobé served on the board of the Brand Design Association and was recently invited to join the IBM Marketing Advisory Board. His design work and writing have appeared in The New York Times, BusinessWeek, Brandweek, Women’s Wear Daily, Harper’s Bazaar, and The Economist. He has won awards from I.D., Interiors, Graphis, VM+SD, the New York Art Directors Club, and Clio. He speaks regularly on marketing and design at Columbia University and at conferences worldwide.

I caught up with Marc by email which was a great way to bypass the time difference. An interesting conversation followed. more +

BIG COMPANIES BUY SMALL BRANDS WITH BIG VALUES

USA Today

March 2006

Consumers have shown they are willing to pay a premium for "natural" products from values-oriented companies that make them feel good, and big marketers want a piece of the profitable trend.

Marketing expert Marc Gobé said the buyers aren't just after profits. The smaller companies "have a discipline of ethics they want to emulate in their own companies," said the CEO of marketing agency Desgrippes Gobé Group and author of Citizen Brand: 10 Commandments for Transforming Brands in a Consumer Democracy. more +

ZEN AND THE ART OF BRAND MAINTENANCE

Brandchannell.com

April 2005

"Any trend has to meet some emotional need," says Marc Gobé, chairman and CEO of Desgrippes Gobé and author of Emotional Branding. "In supermarkets ten years ago, brand offerings were very minimal and line expansion was centered around a tactical approach. But today you see more and more of an emotional approach - an experiential approach. […]Marketers have discovered a way to tune into that through product offerings. Based on the products they are using, consumers get permission to express themselves and be socially responsible." more +