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Through an in-depth Q&A, Resplendent had the opportunity to get to know the people and mission behind Campfire & Co.
Expert in the Field is a series where we highlight experts we love who are making waves in their respective industries. This month, our Vice President Melissa Grady got to hop on Instagram Live with Christina Kern and Christie Thompson from Campfire & Co., a design studio based in Richmond, Virginia, to talk about the importance of branding.
Before diving into the meat of the conversation, here is little about Campfire & Co:
“We combine branding, web design, and interior design. We work with restaurants, retail, wellness, corporate, and nonprofit clients. We work mainly in Richmond but have clients in Hampton Roads, Northern Virginia, and Maryland. The pandemic has caused us to expand to more areas beyond Virginia throughout the East Coast like New York. We love working with clients similar to the clients that Resplendent works with which are brand-facing types of clients. We work with companies that have a hospitality edge or value aspects of hospitality.”
Q: Who is your ideal client? How do you select the type of clients your company works with?
A: Ideally, we’d be creating branding, web design and interior design all for one client to create that cohesive experience across all the touchpoints. We are unique in that we have both branding and interior design under one roof, so our team is experienced in understanding how brands can be deployed in interior spaces. So our ideal client is someone who values all those touchpoints and wants to go the extra mile to create really special experiences in all those places. They love design and get excited about it, but are also willing to trust us throughout the process and our lead along the way.
Q: You touched on clients that value your type of work, how do you educate clients on the importance of branding?
A: We’re super honest about the work that it takes to create a brand on both sides. This helps our clients be ready to invest and value the end product. Branding is your most important tool to differentiate your business from the rest. Oftentimes we talk to clients and they will tell us why they are amazing and what they offer, but they don’t have a brand or a unique space to articulate the things that make them special. Branding tells a story in a quick amount of time that pulls people in even for just 30 more seconds. As you get deeper into branding it is something that can signify the quality of what you do or even just your personality. We get super excited about creating a brand personality for companies and then building those experiences off the personality because it creates more depth. Branding is just the way you tell a story without being there in person.
Q: You touched on how this is an investment for a company, so how do you work with smaller businesses that might not have an abundance of resources? How do you prioritize what is best for them?
A: Our services and pricing are always tiered based on the scale of the business and the reach of the brand. For example, a local retail store that only has plans for one store and does not plan on expansion is not going to be the same scope of price as a company that has plans to sell something nationally. We have different packages that we tailor to the size of a business. We also have a base package that includes the minimum of things that we think are required to produce really good high-quality branding.
Q: What is on the horizon for Campfire & Co. for 2022?
A: Post-pandemic people are looking for escapism and expressiveness in any type of design. A few years ago it was very minimalist, clean, and simple, but now it’s been so exciting creating new bold, fun, and playful designs. We’re pushing the boundaries of what a brand would typically do. It’s been inspired by the fact that in the time of COVID we have been cooped up and now when we go out people want something more exciting than the stuff in our homes. Furniture can be a lot more expressive and bold. It might just be a trend, but it’s fun to lean into now… We combine elements from residential and corporate design for that ultimate design. It’s a sweet spot for Campfire & Co.
We enjoyed getting to talk with and learn from Campfire & Co. If you’d like to see the full interview you can watch it here, and be sure to follow us on Instagram @Resplendagram for monthly interviews with industry experts!
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