Christmas is not just a festival, it is a brand. It is an event that is not just awaited by major brands, but also envied by many. As a brand, Christmas has never been diversified. It has always been and always will be one day in a year. It does not have a typical logotype nor has it ever been rebranded. It continues to be the same colour and the same concept of Jesus and Mary, three Kings, the Shepherd, the Drummer Boy, the North Star and our beloved Santa Claus. Yet for some reason, the season of Christmas sees people flocking the streets at Crawford Market (In Mumbai), Malls packed to the brim and everyone in frenzy to buy gifts and decorations for their celebrations. So what makes Christmas so unique?
I have always been a fan of Christmas. Decorating the Christmas tree and packing gifts is something I look forward to every year. But over the years as I grew up, it was no longer just about the tree or the gifts. It transformed into plans that required my tree to look Pinterest worthy, tons of albums and boards created on my phone for gift wrapping ideas, the hunt for a unique dress to wear at Midnight Mass so that nobody wore the same thing as me and so on. But did I lose the essence of Christmas? No, I didn’t. With the tree decoration, placing baby Jesus in the crib remained constant. With the gift exchange, the Christmas dinner with my family and friends remained constant. So how did Christmas as a brand undergo this evolution while retaining its original concept?
The answer is simple. Nobody tried to change Christmas. As time changes, a lot of events and occasions change too. People have no choice but to adapt to changing times. Take Easter for example; it is mostly about Easter Eggs, Easter Bunnies and Egg hunts. But does anyone try to understand why we have Easter Eggs? What do the eggs symbolize? What is Easter? The resurrection of Jesus is lost in the midst of brand promoted Marketing campaigns and products. But that’s not the case with Christmas. No matter how much Santa Claus is hyped up, the story of Christmas will always stay true to its origin. Brands build numerous marketing promotions and campaigns every year, but stay true to the Brand Essence of Christmas.
Need proof? Let’s look into it further:
What is Advent? Advent means “Coming”. It is a season or a period observed by the Catholic Church as the period of waiting for the birth of Jesus. There are four candles, one lit on each Sunday of the Advent Season to mark a countdown to Christmas. Translating this tradition to the Brand World, we have Advent Calendars; a kit launched by brands across all segments, from beauty to food & beverage. Advent Calendars consist of small mini gifts or products, to be opened by a person on the 24 days leading to Christmas.
While there is no documented proof of the original use of the Christmas tree, it is popularly known to emerge from the concept that people kept the tree at home to remind them of spring or the warmer times. Decorating the tree with ornaments, lights etc. originated from Martin Luther who told his children that it reminded him of the star that shone during the birth of Jesus. This also led to the invention of the star atop the tree, AKA the tree topper.
In the brand world, the tree is not only celebrated in its original form of different colours and sizes of Christmas trees, it is also extended into all Marketing Campaigns and Product Packaging. E.g. Socks are packaged in a conical packaging owing to the conical structure of the tree. Or, Miniature travels kits are packaged in baubles that can be hung on trees. The possibilities and the list are endless.
I never had anyone dress up as Santa and put gifts under my tree while growing up. I always knew it was my parents who would buy me gifts. But I still believed in Santa. Because for me, Santa was never a person, it was an emotion. The concept of Santa Claus originated from Saint Nicholas who would dress up in a disguise and leave gifts for orphans on Christmas. From then to now, Santa has always had one purpose; to spread Joy and Happiness.
In our current day scenario, gift giving has transformed into playing Secret Santa, or watching tons of gift guides videos, trying to figure out the perfect gift to give to the people in our lives. Letters to Santa have now become our Christmas wish list, and Naughty or Nice a fun little joke. So while there are stocking fillers, gift sets, blogs and vlogs or Christmas editions, the emotion still remains constant.
Everyone has found the recipe to “Christmas Season Success”. From sentiments to traditions, Christmas is a season of festivities, joy, lights and warmth. It is trucks of optimism bundled into an occasion, loved by people across the globe. It is no longer just for Catholics. Christmas, while being true to its origin is a feeling for everyone.
Christmas is not under a tree, it is in our hearts.
Partner
With 15+ years of spatial design experience, Sveta leads the team that helps extend brands to three-dimensional spaces. She has the ability to visualise intangible attributes such as brand positioning and translate them to materials, finishes and furniture in every space. Her belief is simple – ‘every detail in retail design has to reflect the brand.’ Over the years she has worked with some of the biggest brands in the hospitality and retail industry. At ABND, she is pivotal in projects that require branded interior design, retail design, way-finding and signage systems. Sveta is as defined and disciplined in dance as she is in her work!
March 1, 2018
The pioneer of liberal education in India, Pune based FLAME University is creating waves in liberating young minds. Over the years, the institution has built a reputation for itself that is significant enough to reckon with. Built on the methodology of psychologist Howard Gardner’s ‘multiple intelligence,’ there is a renewed focus on interdisciplinary learning. A vast array of options lies for students as there are over 250 unique major-minor combinations to choose from here. While you can major in subjects like Economics, Psychology, International Studies, Environmental Studies and Journalism, you can also graduate in Dance, Music, Theatre and Design. At FLAME, you could also do a BSc in Applied Mathematics and BBA degrees in Finance, Marketing, Communications Management, HRM, Operations and Entrepreneurship.
At a time when private players are still not trusted in the field of higher education, FLAME University is still a clear preference for young minds, owing to its unique approach. The string of collaborations it has made makes it an institution of excellence which stands out. Renowned foreign universities including Nuffield College, York University of Canada, and Wellesley College, Babson Collaborative and other institutes of repute have tied up with FLAME University.
At ABND, FLAME University was given a rejuvenated identity. Several competing institutions offered Liberal Education as part of the curriculum as well. In an attempt to set themselves apart from the clutter, FLAME University needed to rebrand themselves by giving Liberal Education a new way of expression we proposed for them – ‘Diversity of the Mind.’ To know more on how this reputed institute was envisioned anew and given a dynamic visual identity. To know more Click Here
Founder-Partner
Kunal says, “I’ve no specific talent, I’m merely inquisitive.” While his past experiences include product design, retail branding, packaging and design for manufacturing his true passion lies in branding and strategy. He’s the go-to person whenever the crafting needs finesse or the creation needs a fresh perspective. A certain sixth sense guides him in business and branding, honing the skill through experience. Kunal is also a guest lecturer and visiting faculty at a college in Mumbai, teaching branding to young bright minds.
February 27, 2018
Coming into view, the emerging logistics company, Grab, have recently received heavy government investment backing from Small Industries Development Bank of India’s wholly owned subsidiary, SIDBI Venture Capital Limited. Pratish Sanghvi, the co-founder of Grab, said that this funding of $1.5million is detrimental to their growth as the company is currently working on a crowdsourcing distribution model. SIDBI has joined a list of their big investors including Aramex, Zomato, Sixth Sense Ventures and Oliphans Capital. In spite of the hyperlocal delivery space being overcrowded, Grab was a prominent player for SIDBI to consider because of its sector-agnostic approach and its high chances of being EBITDA positive.
Providing hyperlocal and intracity logistics services to businesses including restaurants, food tech platforms, pharmacies and banks, Grab was once only doing food deliveries, being known as Grab-A- Grub. ABND had worked on the brand’s identity when they wanted to expand from being a food delivery startup to an all-encompassing hyperlocal logistics company. Changing from Grab-A- Grub to Grab, their rebranding made for a more sharper and agile brand. To know more Click Here
February 22, 2018
Thursdays at ABND just got chocolaty! Each of us brought our favourite chocolate to office. There was a huge goblet brimming over with chocolates of all kinds, apart from our favourite ones too. In a game of passing the parcel, the rubik’s cube filling in for the parcel in the last moment, the chocolates were exchanged amongst the chocoholics! What you got to pick in the lottery became your chocolate.The twist in the story came with the fact that the last person to pick her own chocolate in the lottery, got a chance to win the entire Goblet of Chocolates! Poornima won the Goblet. Following that we quirked it up by trading some of our chocolates with the Goblet Queen. It was a fun trade off. There were some toothaches after, but it was a happy sugar rush.
February 19, 2018
After back to back workshops and presentations through the weeks, the team felt like taking a break under the sun. Around the coffee table, there were some games and some lively chatter. While we had started the day all pumped up with a presentation for brand identity that went down well with the client, we ended the day on a light note at a coffee shop. From acting out the weirdest of movie names like ‘Matru ki Bijli ka Mandola’ and ‘Chameli ki shaadi’, we had great fun breaking down apparently simple ones too, when playing dumb charade. All of us had a crazy good time guessing interesting symbols and rhyming words when dissecting and decoding the films. We, at ABND, love our breaks as much as we enjoy the action!
Associate-Strategy
An experimenter at heart, Nikita’s experiences in interior design, sculpture design, advertising and branding has made her flexible to new ideas and new spaces. Nikita is a certified scuba diver. She has her own website, showcasing beautiful illustrations and paintings. Her art speaks of her love for animals and her admiration for the creatures of the sea. She loves to travel around the world and brainstorm on challenges.
Associate-Strategy
Stringing up the world with words, Sumanjari is driven by creativity, but with a purpose. Munching at her table always, she can (over)think but not on an empty stomach. She loves her coffee bittersweet and her strategies well researched. Academically inclined, she has written research papers on a wide range of topics from religion and music to branding to euthanasia. Sumanjari values spending time with her students, lecturing at a college by the weekends apart from her engagement at ABND.
Head-Creative
With a strong influence in the Applied Arts, our happy-go-lucky green haired creative lead has been a constant in team ABND right from its founding years. She is always humming a tune or two and livening up the pulse of the workspace. Ekta’s optimism and openness to new ideas fuels her creative best. Quirking it up in her attire, food and art, Ekta’s innovative at heart. She has a childish impulse of surprising others. Her love for bikes and nature deserves a special mention!
Founder-Partner
Priyanka Sachdev Shahra is a design thinker and serial entrepreneur. Her passions lie in bringing meaningful projects to life. Priyanka’s experience with entrepreneurship begun in 2010, when she cofounded ABND with Kunal Vora. Always having strongly felt for what’s environmentally and socially sustainable, she set up One With Earth in 2014 as a vehicle to support such projects. She has also been involved in an interesting venture which is a first of its kind in Singapore, an online swapping platform called Swapaholic. Priyanka manages the Singapore office of ABND.
Associate-Creative
A woman of less words and more action, this designer on the dot likes to keep it short and sweet. Having mastered in design in college, Poornima is driven by discipline and style. Zumba is a favourite pastime and she is also passionate for the cause of saving stray animals. Simplicity is what defines her spirit, whether she is designing or talking.
Associate-Creative
Debugging and resolving errors, Hitesh is the techie in the house responsible for digital and web strategies. A smooth operator, he is persistent in problem-solving. He is very passionate about solving the Rubik’s cube and we can see him at it often. We can tell that at school he must have been immersed in his science projects, which led him further to study information technology. In sports too it’s always the technique which fascinates him. The music in his ears is always loud enough for the entire office to hear!
Associate-Creative
With several years of experience in Interior Design, Deepu is the go to guy for detailing each space to the T. He lives Mies Van Der Rohe’s quote “god is in the detail”. His experience helps the team visualize design concepts from a detailed point of view, mapping it on to real spaces. A quiet and simple soul, we can always see Deepu working at his desk with complete concentration. A workaholic at heart, he is also a cricket buff and a harmonium player. He likes sticking to a rule book but won’t mind swinging to a catchy rhythm when he’s off work.
Administrator
Organized and to the point, our administrator likes keeping the house in order. Florie also has varied talents in cooking, sewing and embroidering. Diligence drives us as a team and so does it drive the person who holds the pack together. Florie is fond of country music and likes reading murder mysteries.