Creating a new brand from scratch can be expensive and time-consuming, two valuable resources that nascent businesses are in short supply of. Not only that, but there’s the apprehension of committing a large chunk of money to a branding project, occasionally sight unseen, and merely trusting the studio behind it to create something beautiful and effective (with the occasional logo they want BIGGER, naturally).

For studios, in particular, it’s resource-intensive (and don’t even get us started on free pitching). Often, several concepts are generated to present to the client, who will then choose one. The brand identities the client doesn’t pick might otherwise be great, but will be thrown into the metaphorical drawer, never to see the light of day. There are also branding concepts developed as design exercises and marketing ploys shared with the world that never see production or live in the real world. They exist and generate buzz and praise, but not much beyond that.