About

Progress is unconventional

Otherward is a brand design consultancy based in New York. We help founders and businesses define their challenges and envision bold new ways to push culture and commerce forward.

We all know change is a constant—plots twist, culture shifts, markets move. Yet, so often our response is to hold fast to the status quo. We cling to what’s worked in the past, cite best practices, and try to weather the storm. The more things change, the more we stay the same.
Look around and the world feels full of this kind of sameness, forgettable brands that look, sound, and feel exactly like each other. Companies striving to blend in and seem the part. Business as usual.
But profound and remarkable change doesn’t happen by adhering to the way things are done today. Progress requires that we resist convention in search of a more imaginative solution. By moving forward in an unexpected direction we are able to find new and impactful responses to what happens next.
This is how we work. We partner with founders and companies to help clarify their unique points of view and build distinct, memorable brands that resonate in our ever-changing world.
CAPABILITIES

We use strategy, technology, and design to bridge the gap between vision and audience.

Strategy

We combine research and analysis with cultural insight to connect with audiences in new and meaningful ways.

User/Market Research
Positioning
Content Strategy
User Experience
Product/Service Strategy
GTM Strategy

Identity

We create dynamic brand identities that communicate consistently across every customer interaction.

Visual Identity Design
Naming
Voice & Messaging
Brand Guidelines

Content

We write and direct unique, compelling content that reinforces your brand story.

Copywriting
Creative Direction
Production
Film, Photo & Motion
Illustration

Experience

We design the packaging, products, and digital experiences needed to create a unified brand experience.

Campaigns
Packaging
UX / UI Design
Website Development
Experience Design
Environmental Design
OUR APPROACH

We build each engagement around a small, multidisciplinary team of specialists with experience delivering brand development at speed and scale.

Network effects

Each project is partner-led with the right team for the challenge at hand. We have a core senior staff plus a wide network of strategists, designers, writers, and technologists that work quickly and collaboratively to deliver at every stage of the project.

Adapt and evolve

Conditions on the ground change. Tools are replaced. Opinions shift. We react and adapt. We are comfortable with the ambiguity and uncertainty of working on complex challenges.

Evidence-based brands

Successful brands are driven by clear, actionable goals. We establish metrics to measure success at launch and over time.

One size fits none

We use all the tools and methodologies at our disposal and tailor our process to each client. There is always more than one way to achieve a goal. One size fits no one.

Who we work with

“Otherward have such mastery of their craft, it’s awesome to witness.”

Hank Willis Thomas, Artist / Co-Founder, For Freedoms

“Working with the team at Otherward was foundational. They stretched and sharpened our thinking.”

Casper ter Kuile, Co-founder, Sacred Design Lab

“Otherward excels at giving ideas a meaningful visual form.”

Rob Colvin, Founder, Arts Magazine

“Otherward’s work has not only transformed how our clients and industry perceive us but also how we see ourselves.”

Megan Fox Kelly, Principal, Megan Fox Kelly Art Advisory
Select Experience
Arkana Laboratories
Atlantis
Bike New York
BrXnd
The Corcoran Group
Douglas Elliman
The Equity Project
For Freedoms
The Four Horsemen
Fyrn
Hirshhorn Museum
Homecoming
Jigsaw Productions
Le Guanahani
MAPS
Megan Fox Kelly
Museum of Arts and Design
The New York Times
Sacred Design Lab
Schneider Museum of Art
The Turk’s Inn
UCLA Center for Justice
Village Preservation
White Flower Farm
Wide Awakes
Windsor
Zing Bar
partners

Tim Hucklesby is a creative director based in New York City.  With over a decade of experience in branding, his work bridges technology and design. He prior studio experience includes Doyle Partners and Red Antler and has taught at Shillington School. He has broad client experience including American Express, Cole Haan, David Byrne, Diageo, Google, Johnson & Johnson, Museum of Arts and Design, The New Yorker, Stephen Colbert and Washington Square Park Conservancy.

Elliott Walker is a creative director based in New York City. He has worked at design consultancies Pentagram, Collins, and Studio Lin and teaches design at the School of Visual Arts. He has experience working on a range of projects for clients including Adobe, American Express, Cisco, Condé Nast Entertainment, Fab, Minneapolis Institute of Art, NBC, Neil Young, On Being, Optimum, Saturday Night Live, The United Nations, and Vice.

Trends follow a formula.
Principles lead to innovation.