“Successful brands appeal to the heart as much as they do to the intellect.” The owner, CEO and Creative Director Tom Emil Olsen spoke with Localfolk about KINDS’s philosophy on emotional branding. Before 2013, Tom had been in the business for a while. He had studied marketing at first, but at the time, it didn’t interest him as much as designing did. “Marketing is more theoretical and designing is more creative.” Initially, after studying design, he admits he just wanted to create things that looked nice. “But once I started creating and was doing well, I saw what was benefiting the client.”
Tom soon found that his background in marketing was assisting his success in design. “Nowadays, everything is digital and run by algorithms – and it’s not real,” he said. “We know people make decisions with their emotions, not rationale. I saw how storytelling could affect decision-making. It changed my whole perception of branding. I had to find out for myself. You need to see it for yourself before you start believing in it.”
Instead of just examining a product in order to advertise it, KIND explores the people behind the product. “What is their personality? What do they want to be remembered for? We ask ourselves what are the values of our clients, and what are the values of their clients.” Using that same logic, Tom has brilliant, like-minded people working for KIND. “You want to hire people who have the same values, just like people find the brand that fits them.” KIND’s teams of experts are already across the globe. Shortly after the head office was established in Bergen, Norway, KIND expanded by branching out to Oslo, Aberdeen and Shanghai – meaning you’re guaranteed to recognise some of their work. “It takes time to build reputation, but throughout the world, people are finding us.”
If you don’t recognise their work with Bareksten Spirits (which has won awards for both its taste and product design) or Ørjan Johannessen’s seaweed company, Flyt (which could very well be the most-awarded seafood brand both nationally and globally), perhaps you’ve heard the story of the world’s fastest Paralympics athlete, Salum Ageze Kashafali.
In June 2019, Salum set a new world record for one hundred metres in Oslo. A refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Salum started losing his vision after he had arrived Norway. Tom met Salum during a photoshoot and asked him if he had any sponsors. Salum was in disbelief of Tom’s interest and generous offer. Even when Tom called Salum and followed up a week later, the athlete still believed Tom’s offer was too good to be true. Tom had been personally moved by Salum’s story and had decided almost immediately upon their meeting to become his principle sponsor. It had happened organically, all because of the emotion behind Salum’s story. “I just felt a connection,” and that was all Tom needed. (Although it took some time to convince Salum that Tom wasn’t joking.)
As exemplified with the story of Salum, it appears as though KIND’s philosophy on emotional branding is more of a lifestyle choice or a matter of emotional intelligence rather than a philosophy. “We’re really into long-term relationships and working with people from all over the world.” And he means that: Tom has been in the business for twenty-two years, and Norway’s leading manufacturer of guttering systems has been a client of his for every step of the way. “If you can get emotional about gutter systems, you can get emotional about anything!”
The international, multi-award winning agency has won too many titles and trophies to list here. Two of their most notable awards might be two of their most recent wins. KIND won Europe’s Best Agency by the European Design Awards 2019/20 and was named the 2020/21 Global Agency of the Year by The World Brand Design Society. “It’s affirmation that what you’re doing is what you wanted,” was Tom’s humble reply. “And it’s how you know the work you’re doing is working for your clients.”
The name KIND isn’t just a nod to the shared values or likeliness a group of people may share. The meaning of the name is twofold and also signifies the empathy and thoughtfulness with which the company executes its goals. This isn’t a marketing gimmick; this is how KIND creates its unique branding. KIND wants people to feel moved by the messages they create, making them so much more than a branding agency.
