This project was a major innovation within the Clorox company. Not only was it the first new product they had brought to market in almost 10 years, but it was also an important collaboration between ourselves and the Meredith brand group who owns Real Simple magazine.
Our goal, as Clorox’s in house creative team, was to breathe new life into the outdated Real Simple cleaning line. Although mainly focused on the packaging, we approached this from a ground up perspective. Aside from the packaging aspect we also began to explore how the brand would work as a system; logo, icons, in-store assets etc.
After dozens of renditions we finally landed on a look and feel that aligned with the established Real Simple aesthetic of using bold photography on flat colored backgrounds. We took this idea and evolved and adapted it into a fresh modern approach that focused on the scents and natural ingredients that made up the cleaning formulas. The end result was joyful, fun and engaging.
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Art Direction: Kean Hiroshima & Myself
Photography: Annabelle Breakey
Copywriting: Corbin Cloward & Myself
This was another innovation project done at Clorox. The scent based cleaning line, Scentiva, wanted to update its look to appeal to a younger, more multi-cultural audience. This was basically a rebranding effort, but focused mainly on the packaging. As a designer on this project I was encouraged to take off the guardrails and really explore what could be done.
I absolutely love being given the opportunity to reimagine where a brand might go and to bring it into a more relevant space. My love of typography and illustration gives me a unique perspective on this process and allows me to bring maximum joy to the table.
Although none of these designs made the final cut, I like to think I helped to form some new ideas within the brand and to allow room for growth in the future.
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Art Direction: Kean Hiroshima & Myself
Copywriting: Julie Gordon
Over the 100 plus years that Clorox has been in business it has established itself as a trusted family brand, bringing safe and effective cleaning solutions into millions of homes. It’s efficacy was never more welcomed than during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Families depended on Clorox wipes to keep their homes and children safe.
In 2019 I worked with Clorox to develop a Back-to-School packaging system for their wipes. This system was implemented across a wide range of bundled packs.
We really wanted the design to tie into the STEAM program, but in a subtle way. STEAM is an approach to learning that results in children who take thoughtful risks, engage in hands-on learning, persist in problem solving, embrace collaboration, and work through the creative process.
The result was a unique design with major shelf pop that built brand awareness. Because who says that cleaning and safety can’t be fun?
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Art Direction: Kean Hiroshima
Kingsford, the century old charcoal brand, wanted to up their game in the merch department. They wanted something ‘cool, but not too cool’. Something that spoke to their core audience in a fun way. They wanted to show that the brand has a playful side. I was just the man for the job.
This group of merchandise speaks to the sensorial pleasures of grilllng. The feeling you get on a warm evening with your closest friends in your backyard, at the beach or in the park, when the smoke mixes with the smell of grass, ocean and laughter.
Now you can take that feeling with you wherever you go and let everyone know that you are ‘cool, but not too cool’.
Illustration & Design: Myself
Art Direction: Lee Fenyves & David Gilkey
Copywriting: Myself
Burt’s Bees, has been a leader in the natural skin care world for almost 40 years. When they approached me to create a line of packaging for their Holiday gift sets for Target I jumped at the chance. Getting to work on such a big project for a household name was, and still is, an honor.
The end result was a magical set of what felt like little treasures. Each set unique in form and design. It was a joy to see this project come to life and see these products hit the shelf.
Over the years we have developed a close relationship and they are one of my favorite brands to work with.
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Art Direction: Carl Mazer
Another amazing collaboration between the folks at Burt’s Bees and myself. I absolutely love working with the team over there. They make big grueling projects like this feel like a walk in the park.
Burt’s Bees set out to establish a new line of products for babies and mama’s. This was a massive undertaking that spanned about 8 months or so. Tons of exploration on which animals would best suit each product and what pose would be best for each form. This was definitely a labor of love.
The end result is one of the sweetest, cutest line-up of products I have had the privilege of working on. Unique, whimsical and innovative; all while fitting nicely into the brands existing portfolio. The products themselves are amazing too. We use many of them regularly in our household.
Illustration: Myself
Design: Mariko Harashima
Art Direction: Carl mazer
A collection of personal lettering pieces.
An exploration of logo lock-ups to celebrate the 60th anniversary of Cost Plus World Market. The final asset was to be used company wide including in-store signage, online marketing, mailers, email blasts etc. What you see here is about half of what I produced.
Art Direction: Myself
Design: Myself
Various concepts for a 'Food Facts' program of in-store graphics aimed at conveying stories about various global food favorites in a fun and interesting way. The exploration took us through a wide variety of styles, many not shown here. There were very few constraints in this early exploration. The main goal was to capture a shoppers attention long enough to get them to stop and read these signs as they strolled down an aisle.
A big part of my job was in reproducing various styles of print and advertisement throughout history and different cultures. Whether it was ghost signage on an old barn or letterpress printing from the 50’s, I strived to replicate these style and aesthetics in a fresh way that would fit within the existing branded atmosphere of the Cost Plus shopping experience.
Art Direction: Jeffrey Pelo
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Copywriting: Myself
A collection of packaging concepts.
Art Direction: Myself
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Various concepts for an in-store Holiday campaign. This campaign, when completed, involved more than 60 separate graphics in all. The exploration for this campaign spanned about 2 months. During that time myself and the associate art director explored various approaches and styles. As with much of the work done for Cost Plus a big part of the process was to gain inspiration from the past and from cultures from around the world. The goal was to create a cohesive environment for the shopper. The trick was to pick a style that wasn’t to specific but still gave a nod to a place or time in history. Once a style was chosen it was applied across a wide range of signage and environmental graphics throughout the store, ranging from large environmental backdrops to small aisle markers that spoke to specific products.
Art Direction: Jeffrey Pelo
Design: Myself
Hand lettering: Myself
Illustration: Myself
A collection of logo and branding projects done for a variety of clients. The exception being the ‘Dark Horse’ brand which was a self-initiated passion project.
Art Direction: Myself
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Hand Lettering: Myself
Concepts for a poster that would serve to inform and remind employees of Cost Plus World Markets’s goals and objectives. Shown here is small portion of my exploration of styles. The objective was to create a fun and engaging piece that reflected the companies playful and worldly vibe.
Art Direction: Jeffrey Pelo
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
A random assortment of in-store signage pieces used in various campaigns at Cost Plus World Market.
Art Direction: Jeffrey Pelo
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Hand lettering: Myself
Conceptualization for an in-store graphics campaign at Cost Plus World market that would accompany a seasonal shop that offered a wide assortment of gift ideas for Mother's Day.
Art Direction: Jeffrey Pelo
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Hand Lettering: Myself
A collection of apparel designs created for a wide variety of clients from clothing brands to world famous musicians. One of my favorite things about this type of work was helping artists such as Paul McCartney, Tupac, Billy Joel and Katy Perry to reach new audiences and expand upon their brand. To date I think I have done over 200 apparel designs.
Design: Myself
Illustration: Myself
Hand Lettering: Myself
