BRAND NEW BRAND
I LOVE CHANGE!..
Some people loathe change, while some of us thrive on it.
Yes, it’s a bit risky to shy away from a name that is loaded with nothing but five-star reviews, but here’s my thinking…
When I arrived at Prints Charming Photography & Framing in 1996 it was a creative play on words, inspired by the pain of a name that is NOT marketable. If five people are speaking five versions of my Germanic last name, then the power of repetition is GONE! (BTW - unless you’re in Germany, Geraths rhymes with carrots)
So, what the heck, it was cute. We made this little knight on a horse, eventually adding PC to the flag.
Crafted from clip art, I was on a budget, so we went with it.
In 1997, as part of a web design class at PSU, my then sister-in-law Liesl (and her eventual husband Christopher) created a galloping version of the “Prints” on a horse.
Ten years later, my web designer created a very stylish new site. Before going live with it he called to say “I’m done with your site, but honestly just can’t put that horse on it. Can I toss a few ideas by you?..
After a few minor revisions, voila! The crown in the filmstrip became round two.
Another 10 years pass, I’m working with a graphic artist on some new business cards who told me the same thing. “I think you need a new logo…” I told her yes to having a stab at it, but said specifically - no film strip and no crown. I arrived to discover a creative use of the crown that appeared to be people celebrating. Version three was born!
Prints Charming just became too cute for my headshot specialty, so I rebranded the commercial (B2B services) under Photo Media in 2016.
Imagine putting “Prints Charming” on an RFP to local government and other larger firm requests for bids. It was more cute than legitimate for commercial projects.
Branding that service to Photo Media led to it out-performing Prints Charming more than 3 to 1.
This gave me cause to look again at Prints Charming. A name that I’ve enjoyed boasting “the original” since they popped up in nearly every state of the US, but it just doesn’t feel right for what I see as modern, stylish portraits that are wall-worthy, or relatable by my biggest clientele - high school seniors.
I am only beginning to think about the Studio B logo, but for now - want to make sure that my clients know that it’s still me at Studio B.
B-rian Geraths
