at issue vol1 no1

7/28/2019 At Issue Vol1 No1

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S t a r b u c k s : A V i s u a l C u p o'JoeW h y F e d e r a l E x p r e s s B e c a m e F e i l xKodak CEO George F isher on Des ign

T H E J 0 U R N A L O F B U S I N E S S & D E S I G N


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Volume 1, No.lThe journal of business and design.PublisherCorporate Design FoundationSponsored by Potlatch CorporationEditorDelphine HirasunaDesignPentagramKit Hinrichs, Design DirectorPiper Murakami, DesignerCon t ribut ing W ri tersDennis DeBiaseDelphine HirasunaShelby HypesPeter LawrenceResearch AssistantPatricia ReiterI llustrat ion and PhotographyDavid SuterBarry RobinsonJeff CorwinEd itorial A dvisory B oardPeter LawrenceCorporate Design Foundation


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a j o u r n a l a b o u t t h e e f fe c ti v eu s e of d e s i g n i n b u s i n e s s .W h i l e d e s i g n m a n i f e s t s i t s e l f

i n n e a r l y e v e r y a s p e c t of b u s i n e s s f r o ma r c h i t e c tu r e , s i gna ge , r e t a i l i n t e r i o r s , t he phys i c a la p p e a r a n c e a n d e rg o n o m i c h a n d l i n g of a p r o d u c t

W e l c o m ea jourmu s e o f


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I S S U EK o dak C E O G eo rg e F is h er on D e sig nThroughout h is successful tenure as CEO of Motorola and nowE as tm an Kodak C ompany, G eorge M .C . F i sher has cham pionedthe importance of design in business. Here he ta lks to PeterL awrence of the C orporate D esign F oundat ion about how tomake design an integral part of a company's business s trategy.

H o w d o y o u d e fi n e d e s i g n a n dw h a t i s i t s r o l e w i t h i n b u s i n e s s ?T o m e , d e s i g n i s d e f i n i n g w h a t i su l t im a te ly u se f u l a n d u sa b l e t o c u s to m e r s George M"C- Fisher bec amechairman, president and chief

F r o m t im e to t im e , m a k e su r e t h a t d e s ig nis the p r imary inpu t as long as i t ' sa p p r o p r i a t e l y l i n k e d t o m a r k e t n e e d s . AC E O a l w a y s s p e a k s m o r e b y a c t i o n s t h a n


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P eoplen e e d t oa p p r e c ia te a t am u ch y ou n g e ra g e t h a td e s ig n m u s tb e in te g r a te di n t o b u s i n e s s .D e s ig n is n o ta s e r v i c ef u n c t i o n . "

their products aren ' tdoing as well, after all therationalization is over,they often realize that itis because of poor designor because they haven'tpaid enough attention toi ts importance.How can managerslearn more about design?I 'm a great believer inlearning by doing.Managers must makedesign part of their ongoing business process ,so it is not somethingthey have to think about;i t becomes somethingthey live with naturally.There are t remendous

resources in the design communit ies of a l l thesecorporations, but too often, we don't take adequate

C a n y o u s h a r e a fe w o f y o u rd e s ig n e x p e r i e n c e s a t M o t o r o la ?W hen we did MicroTac, R udy Krolopp (director ofindustrial design) held up a very small phone as a modelmany, many years before the produ ct came out. R udy 'sabili ty to conceptualize what might be possible reallydrove some very good circuit designers and mechanicalengine ers to bring that vision to fruition. R udy hadenough credibility with all of us to gain our support.

In the old days of the paging business, we had anO ptrix pager. The first version had m any button s and wasso complex no ne of us could figure out how to use it. BobS chwendem an (now Motorola 's vice president and seniormember of the technical staff) decided that we shouldpay more attention to the industrial and human factorsdesign and get some outside professional help, one of thefirst t imes we did that in the non-consumer business atMotorola. O ptrix turned into an extremely good prod uctwhich sel ls as an a lpha-numeric pager today. I 'mwearing one r ight now. I ts human factors are superb.Had it gone out in i ts earliest, more complex form,that product probably would have been a fa i lure .


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engineers have to be challenged to produce somethingthat the industrial designers and marketing folks thinkis needed in the marketplace .What about graphic design, print collateral and advertis-ing? Do they play a role in Kodak's strate gic thinking?They obviously do. At our last brand managementcouncil meeting, a large part of our presentation had todo with the various logos and color schem es we use, andthe simplification of our product line from a presentationand graphic standpoint as well as design. Maintainingthe integrity of our brands is an important part of thepicture at Kodak. The chief marketing officer, a positionI just formed, is responsible for that. He is a personwho is quite committed to the role of design and keepingup our graphic s tandards .How do you make sure you're working withgood design people? What do you look for?I let the leaders of our design community make thosedecisions. I 'm more directly involved with knowing whatI want from the design community; the leaders of thatcommunity pick their own people. They have to havemarketing-savvy, as well as design-savvy. Increasingly,

It I theend, whatcustomers

see iswhat design-ers design."

really

a lot more functionality.The problem is br ingingthat functionality outof the box in a way that isuseful to consumers .Both the physical designand human factors designof how consumers useall this power within thebox become the mostdifficult problem, andperhaps the one that wi l l

dif ferent ia te the winners f rom the losers .How will the industrial designer'srole change in the age of electronics?I think the industrial designer has to know that a lot ofthe functionality will be brought out in soft form throughsoft displays with a minimal number of human buttons.The designer 's role is to express this complexity in thesimplest way to use possible.Describe the ideal relationshipbetween design and business?


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. . . . . .....


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W h y F e d e r a l E x p r e s s B e c a m e F e d E xW h y w o u l d a com pany w i th a nam e so r ecogn izab le t ha t i t hasb e c o m e t h e g e n e r i c e q u i v a l e n t of o v e r n i g h t d e l i v e r y s e r v i c ec h o o s e to r e v a m p it s i d e n t i t y ? F o r F e d e r a l E x p r e s s , g l o b a lsucces s dem anded a change . The cha l l enge cam e in p r ese rv ingi ts brand equi ty , whi le ensur ing that i t s ident i ty s tood out f roma growing f ie ld of g lobal compet i tors .

Gayle C h r i s t e n s e n , F e d e r a l E x p r e s sM a n a g i n g D i r e c t o r o f C o r p o r a t e M a r k e t i n gFederal Express management gave Christensen virtuallycomplete decision-making au thority over the identity

L in d o n G r a y L e a d e r , L a n d o r A s s o c i a t e sS e n i o r D e s i g n D i r e c t o rLeader headed a team of Landor designers who createdthe new FedEx identity system and launched the basic


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so radic al, skeptics abou nde d. Xerox C orporation eventested the system by shipping empty boxes for two weeksbefore entrusting F ederal E xpress with real docum ents.

But work it did. Today FedEx operates in more than20 0 co untries, using a fleet of 45 8 aircraft (making itthe nation's third largest airline) and 45,000 vehiclesto deliver an average of two million packages each day.

G iven this growth, F ederal E xpress asked itselfwhether the "big and bold but friendly and accessible"image it wanted to convey was getting across. Thatquest ion a lso entered the mind of L andor A ssocia tes , a

worldwide brand and identity design consultancy, as i tconsidered chang es occu rring in the air freight industry.In 1990, Landor presented this case to Federal Expressmana gemen t. A lthough it created a favorable impression,the timing w asn't r ight for F edE x. With millions of logoapplications on vehicles, aircraft , storefronts, uniforms,drop boxes, packaging, collateral material, stationeryand business forms involved, "the need hadn't yetreached a cr i t ica l mass ," recal ls Gayle C hr i s tensen ,F edE x managing director of corporate market ing. "T hathappened only when it was clear that our image no

Original LogoThe logo's upward diagonal helped toexpress the dynamism of the company,but proved restricting on new vehicles.The large purple field also proved costly.

O p t i o n 1A logo finalist, this version retained visualcontinuity with the original by using capitalletters, the FedEx colors and, in this case, anangled box.

B r i g h t e r C o l o r sBy adding red tothe purple an d subtracting it from theorange, the FedExcolors achieved ne w

Q A F r i e n d ly T y p e f a c eThe logotype is acombination ofFutura Bold an dUnivers Bold.Upper an d lower


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longer looked fresh and our logo nolonger worked in all the different w aysi t had to be appl ied."

In l a t e 1992 , Fede ra l E xp re s sinvi t ed Landor back . "We were

asked to take a good hard look at the company and i t sma rke t s , assess F edera l E xpre ss ' s pos it i on , and m akeany needed ad jus tment s , " says L indon Leader , sen iordesign di rector at Landor.

O ver the next year, L andor ' s research u ni t con ductedsome 40 focus groups with employees and customers

and interviewed indust ry leaders in 12 markets aroundthe world. I t a lso compared F ederal E xpre ss ' s exist ingidentity with the identities of a range of technology-smartcompanies known for innovation and marketing savvy.

I t s research showed the exist ing ident i ty hadtwo great st rengths: the st rong brand equi ty of FederalE xpress (and it s popu lar verb form F edEx) bothclosely ident i f ied wi th speed, rel iabi l i ty, innovat ionand customer service, and the power of i t s s ignaturecolors purp le and orange to communica te urgencyand l eade r sh i p .

Federal Express

Opt ion 2The angled type and arrow conveyed anaerodynamic quality. B ut when the logo wasapplied to the right side of a vehicle, itappeared to be facing the wrong direction.

O p t io n 3The current logotype emerges, with the boxretained from the original trademark. But whenreduced in scale for use on catalog orderforms, th e logo shrank to an unreadable size.

Federal Express

S e c r e t A r r o wMeant to be asecondary read, asubtle arrow wascreated by raisingthe x-heightbetween the E and

O f fi c i a l N a m eThe new logocarries the dualidentity of thecompany: FedEx,its brand name,and Federal


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R esearch surveys also uncovered problems with theword federal. In 1973, the word had given the companyimmediate equity, an official alternative to the postoffice, but today it was more often associated with beingbure aucra tic and slow. In L atin A merican co untries, itconjured images of the federates, and in some otherparts of the world, people had trouble pronouncing

Federal Express.Based on its worldwide focus group

research, Landor recommended thatthe company shorten i ts brand nameto "F edE x" and adopt the tagl ine

"Th e World O n Time" to sum up i ts key message global scope, accessibili ty, speed, reliabili ty in foursuccinct words. Federal E xpress was re ta ined as theofficial corporate name.

With a green light from F ederal E xpress seniormanagement to develop a design, Landor "came upwith 400 prel iminary sketc hes ," recal ls C hris tensen.

usual bureaucratic barriers by designating one companydecis ion-ma ker C hris tensen once it approved thedes ign . L eader p ra i ses the cho ice of C hr i s t ensen ."Gayle had a genu ine apprec ia t ion o f the p rocess , "he says . "S he very ski l lful ly rode the fence betwee ninterpret ing [ to her company] what we were t rying toaccompl i sh , and communica t ing to us the u l t ima tes t ra teg ic ob jec t ives of F edEx ma nag em ent . "

This true collaboration between designer and clientled to a design that incorporates several ingeniousgraphic e lements . By shortening the name, replacingthe 1970s typeface, removing the restrictive purplefield around the logotype, and adding the tagline, thecompany's strongest attributes are captured visually.

C ompany vehicles have become moving bi l lboards ."W herea s 'F ederal E xpres s ' only permit ted 58 - inchletters on the side of a trailer, the letters spelling FedExcan stand six feet tall ," says Bruce M cG overt, L ando r's


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imp lemen ta t ion d i r ec to r . "Airplanescan be r ead ac ros s an en t i r e airfield."

C os t s w as a l s o a ma jo r con ce r n .F e d E x i n s i s t e d t h a t t h e c h a n g e o v e rbe economica l ly s mar t a s w e l l a s

s t r a t e g i c . "The r e s e a r c h , d e v e l o p m e n t a n d l a u n c hof ou r new co rpo ra te iden t i ty cos t s l e s s tha n th ep r o d u c t i o n a n d p l a c e m e n t o f o n e a v e r a g e T V c o m m e r c i a l , " C h r i s t e n s e n r e v e a l s . F o r e x a m p l e , r e d u c i n gthe us e o f the pu rp le f ie ld on l a rge F edE x t ruck s cu tt h o u s a n d s o f d o l l a r s .

"E l imina t in g the pu rp le f ie ld can s ave as mu ch as$1,000 in labor and mater ia ls on one 53-foot t ractort r a i l e r a lone , " M cG over t says . "A nd the company ow ns10, 00 0 of that type vehi cle . " Aircraf t pain t jobs a lso wil lcos t much less wi thout purple cover ing near ly halfof the je t , and even bet ter , i t s absence wil l reducesurface tem pera tures of the a i rcraf t by 4 0

degrees , thus lower ing energy needed to cool the p lanesand allowing FedEx to cut back on fuel costs per f l ight.

Wi th 30 ,000 FedEx d rop boxes ac ros s the coun t ry ,any saving s can be s ignif ica nt . To avoid the exp ens e ofr epa in t ing boxes in eve ry loca t ion , La ndor d es igne da decal sys tem with increased legib i l i ty to re t rof i t overthe o ld logo por t ion of exis t ing de ca ls . N ew boxes wil llook complete ly d if ferent , tak ingadvan tage o f the l a rge r ho r i zontal logo.

" U l t i m a t e l y w e a r e n ' tjus t looking forexped ien t s o lu tions to a


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Federal Express

F ederal E xpress


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3 0 ,0 0 0 D r op B oxe sOver the past 20 years, FedEx dropboxes had evolved into various sizes,shapes and configurations and thepurple paint had become impossibleto remove without sandblasting.A retrofit kit allowed new decals tobe placed over the old ones. Newboxes will look like the one above.

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l ike FedEx Ship (a proprietary software used by customers to track or ship their own packages) were closeto introduction, and management wanted them all tocarry the new look.

With a June 24 deadline looming, the design teamworked 70-hour weeks. The launch of the new FedExname was a closely guarded secret, intended by management to catch the public and the competition unaware. "We wanted to make an event, to create awhole new identity as if i t had happened overnight andget as much coverage as we cou ld," says C hristense n.Two days before the event, a newly converted MD-11was secretly flown from a paint ha nga r in Mobile, A la.

and hidden behind

FedExFecCx * A FedEx


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"Just e l i m i n a t in g t h ep u r p le f i e l d fr o m F e d E x 's10,000 t r a c t o r t r a i l e r se n a b l e d t h e c o m p a n y t os a ve n e a r ly $ 1 0 m ill io n inla b o r a n d m a t e r ia l s ."

L andor learne d at S ubic Bay, the acryl ic , neon-l it let tershad to wi thstand typhoon winds of 120 m p h , twice thenormal U .S . requi rement . "F red S mi th was p lanning tofly into there only eight weeks after the Subic Bay dealwas completed, and he expected to see skyl ine signs onthe FedE x hangar bear ing the new identi ty ," M cG overtrecalls. "We had to get i t done quickly, and we had topush the vendor to go way beyond what i t was accustomed to. It was difficult to build a sign that would be

The World On Time

ki t , ' Som eth ing Big Ha ppe ned O vern ight ' and sent i tou t t he n ight before the even t , " C hr i s t ensen says .

But the event was mere prologue. After i t came the

so substantial and st i l l meet the simplicity and crispnessof the new logo style. A s usua l , Gayle was able toci rcumvent a lot of the usual commit tee processes to


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he United Parcel Service logo, created by legendarydesigner Paul Rand, is one of America's most recognizableand enduring trademarks.

In 1961, UPS made the changeover to its current trademarkto reflect its transition from retail delivery to common carrierservice. At the time, it asked five designers to submit logoideas. Four designers submitted dozens of ideas; Rand presented one but it was a winner. "When the client told methat it delivers small packages, the solution was obvious," heexplains. "I put a small package over the logo. I showed it tomy 8-year-old daughter and she said, 'Oh, Daddy, that'sa present.' I knew immediately that was the right thing to do.It was memorable."

Rand retained a simplified version of the sh ield, which hadbeen part of UPS's logo since the 1920s. A heraldic symbolthat dates back to medieval times, the shield, suggestingintegrity and pride, had initially been worn by UPS carriers as

a cap badge before working its way into the trademark.As a final touch, Rand changed the typeface from capital

letters to lower case. "They are easier to read, and at the timeeveryone was using capital letters. I wanted to representUPS's uniqueness," he recalls.

UPS management loved Rand's logo, but had problemswith the string bow, because it discouraged customers fromtying packages. But Rand convinced them that without thestring, it would just be a rectangle.

Rand, who also designed logos for IBM, ABC, Westinghouseand Cummins among others, says he did little research beforedeveloping his design. "Most art is essentially intuitive," hesays. "Creating a logo is like writing music, you just do it andyou know when it's right. That's what design is all about;taking the essence of something that is already there andenhancing its meaning by putting it into a form everyone canidentify with."

T heUndesignand erIn 196 1,

D E S I G N A N D B U S I N E S S C L A S S I C S : U P S

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Q u i c k , N a m e t h a t S h a p e !Never underestimate the power of a shape. Shape can make aproduct stand out from competitive brands on the shelf. Itcan become the architectural signature for a retail chain. Orit can simply be a logo stamped on a family of products asthe company's assurance of quality. Able to communicateacross cultures in any language, a recognizable shape provides


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a visual identity even in places where the brand name may behard to pronounce. But for shape equity to develop, the silhouettemust be distinctive and aptly designed for its intended use,and be presented consistently and frequently over time. Hereare 16 familiar shapes that have become synonymous withtheir company or brand. See how manv vou can name.

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R etail is detail ," an adage cited by Starbucks' chairman and CEO Howard Schul tz , i s a dic tum borneout in every aspect of the company's operations.I t has tu rned the consumpt ion o f a mundane

beverage that 's been around for centuries into a trendyand indispensable socia l r i tual . Before Starbucks burs tonto the national scene, drinking coffee had rarelybeen so stylish. Now, orders for "espresso," "lattes" and"no-whip m och as" are drowning out the simpler requestsof yesteryear.

Starbucks moved this beverage out of the kitschycoffee shops, with their waitresses in fril ly aprons, andbanished all remnants of the dark, smoky beatnik era.The S tarbucks sensation is driven not just by the qualityof i ts products but by the entire atmosphere surroundingthe purchase of coffee: the openness of i ts store space,the beauty of i ts packaging, friendly and knowledgeable

service, interesting menu boards, the shape of i tscounter, the quality of l ighting, the texture of the walls,the c leanl iness of the f loorboards . Wh at S tarbucksrecognized long before its imitators was that the art ofretailing coffee went way beyond product. The detailsof the total experience mattered.

Ins ight into the importa nce of the coffee-drinkingenvironment came in 1983 when Schul tz , then directorof retail ope rations, was in Milan. N oting that I taly h adsome 200,000 espresso bars , he observed the customsof the coffee-drinking pub lic and experienc ed anepiph any ab out offering a haven for A meric an coffeelovers. "Coffee houses in I taly are a third place forpeople af ter home and work," he reported. "There 's arelationship of trust and confidence in that environment."

R eturning to Seat t le , S chul tz convincedthe or iginal Starbucks founders *.. - ~_

:-" yy '

How does a lone coffee store in Seattle's busyPike Place market become North America's leading

retail coffee purveyor? Starbucks created an "*>


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t o t e s t the co ff ee ba r conc ep t . I t s ove rw h e lm ing s u c ces s l ed S chu l t z , backed by loca l inves to r s , t o acqu i r eS t a r b u c k s i n 1 9 8 7 .

S ince then, S tarbucks has craf ted a look, a feel , amood to ca tapu l t i t s e l f in to na t iona l p rominence andprof i tabi l ity . E very par t ic ula r from nap kin s to coffeebags , s tore f ronts to window seats , annual repor ts toma i l orde r cata l ogs , tab le tops to the rm al carafes s eem s to r e f lec t w ha t M yra G os e , d i r ec to r of C rea t iveS e rv ices and s e l f -des c r ibed "ke ep er of the look ," ca l l s" the au then t i c and o rg an ic " roo ts of S t a rbu cks , i t ss t rong s ens i t iv i ty abou t communi ty , the env i ronmen tand what i t takes to make a great cup of coffee .

"A l l our des ign , wh eth er i t ' s a pac ka ged food or anew mug , needs to make s ens e and t e l l w ha t w e ' r e

abo ut ," G ose expla ins . "We' re a coffee company.*H We don ' t w an t peop le s c r a tch ing the i r

h e a d s , w o n d e r i n g 'He y , w here d id tha t come f rom? ' "But not jus t any k in d of coffee c om pan y. With a

p roduc t l ine tha t inc ludes over 30 va r i e t i e s o f co f f eeb e a n s , a h e a p i n g a s s o r t m e n t o f p a c k a g e d g o o d s , f r e shp a s t r i e s , t e a s , s y r u p s , a n d p r e s e r v e s , a n d a c a c h eo f r e l a t e d s p e c i a l t y m e r c h a n d i s e n o t t o m e n t i o n an e w b o t t l e d p r o d u c t b e i n g t e s t - m a r k e t e d b y P e p s i C o ,a n d s e v e r a l p r o p r i e t a r y b r a n d n a m e s i n e a c h r e t a i ls to r e in add i t ion to the S ta rbu cks l abe l def in ingand r e f in ing the co rpo ra te image i s an ongo ing s t r a t e g i c i m p e r a t i v e .T hat process is suppor ted a t the h ighes t levels oft h e b u s i n e s s . I n t h e s u m m e r o f 1 9 9 2 , c o m p a n yof fi cer s a s ked S ta rb uck s ' ma rke t ing s ta ff w h e the rthe cu r r en t packag ing o f s o many d ive r s e p roduc t saccu ra te ly r e f l ec ted the w arm , upb ea t , p eop le -o r i en teds ty le that had won the company i ts tenacious fo l lowing.

A Underscoring Starbucks' phenomenal success isits constant vigilance over retail design and packaging.

The story of Starbucks may be less about coffee


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A ccording to G ose, "From a design s tandpoint , w e ' realways trying to speak with one voice, yet that onevoice must also speak different languages."

T o present those languages visually, several designfirms were interviewed. Seattle-based HornallA nderson D esign Works (HAD W) was chosen tobegin with a redesign of the coffee bag. The guidelineswere sol idly out l ined by S tarbucks: 1) D o nothingrevolutionary, since the company had too much equitybuilt into the current coffee bag; 2) R etain the com panylogo and "blend" s tamps; 3) Emphasize the company'sleading-edge role in the industry and its employees'superior knowledge of good coffee preparation; and4) Convey the company's deep commitment to theenvironment .

Working with several Starbucks principals, what thedesign team created did not dramatically alter theimage of Starbucks; however, where the packaging didnot reinforce the desired image, steps were taken tomake it stronger. For example, the design combinedterra-cotta earth tones, for the warmth and intimate feeling the company wanted to convey, with a steam pattern

Soc ia l SceneResponding to anational trend ofwanting to slowdown and smellthe espresso,Starbucks hasbegun incorporating lounge seatingin select locationsto provide arelaxing place forfriends to gather.

'

Related Produ ctsStarbucks' offerings

include food products,gift sets, carafes,


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OBuying ExperienceFine woodwork,sparkling glassdisplays, tilefloors, cheerfullighting andthe organizedefficiency ofStarbucks stores-from built-to-fitshelving towell-labeleddisplays -create a clean,accessibleand friendlyatmosphere.

eMenu Board

Starbucks' educationalattitude is evident in its

informative menu boards,designed to piquecustomers' interest and

get them to try differentblends. Brochures,

labeled displays an dknowledgeable sales

people also help promoteunderstanding of coffee

classifications.


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cup or pastry napkin, l i t t le wonder that a constantwatch is placed over the design of the coffee bars themselves. "I t didn't take top management long to realizethat good store design enhances the speed of retail execution," says Heckler. The store design staff includesabout 80 people divided into regional team s. E achteam is headed by a lead designer working with a staffof up to 10 other designers, including several CADdrafters, and the construction manager for the region.

S tarbucks' design development team is directed byBrooke McCurdy, whose job is to provide leading-edge resources to the store design effort and "tothink about what we're going to look like in the year3 0 0 0 , or whenever i t is we hit themoon!" l aughs McCurdy . "We ' realready looking at ways we canimprove our existing design byfocusing on what customers andemployees think about the look oft h e i r s t o r e s , a n d a t t h e s a m et ime , we t ry to an t i c ipa te fu tu reconsumer s tyles . I s i t going to besomething new and fas t -paced, or

S t or e Gr owt hN U M B E R OF S T OR E S

and efficiency on-the-run, an appreciation for thenatural goodness of coffee and the artistry that grabsyou even before the aroma. This approach is reflectedin the designers ' generous employment of naturalwoods and richly layered, earthy colors (which haveevolved from darker laminates to lighter tones) alongwith judicious high-tech accessorizing, l ike halogenfixtures and Zolatone walls (subtly textured splatter-pain t finishes). N o matter how individ ual the store,overall store design seems to correspond closely to thecompany's first and evolving influences: the clean,una dulte rated c rispn ess of the Pacific N orthwest combined with the urban suavity of an espresso bar in

Milan. "C omfortable without seeming too serious," says McCurdy.

"An urban oasis ," sa id the NewYork Times.The exact mix of influences may

be arguable, but the results arenot. More than 650 retail locationsand 11,000 employees (and counting) spread over 18 states and


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book lovers and conversationalists as well as the oneswho want a quick shot of double espresso and soon areout the door. We're always having to strike the rightbalance between seating that looks 'high design' andseating tha t's comfortable. A s we've been growing, we'vebeen working with fixture and furniture man ufacturersto design around our specifications, as opposed tochoosing s tock i tems."

S elf-crit ical design at Starbucks isn't a recentphenomenon. Heckler recalls the first logo design,which was quickly withdrawn. C reated in 197 1,its premise was to connect Starbucks with the romance

of the high seas and the seductiveness of the siren withthe powerful lure of great coffee. "That 's where theidea of the mermaid first came into focus," remembersHeckler. "We drew upon a 15th-century woodcut of atwin-tailed sire n. I t was a very straightforward imagewith bare breasts. We blew that up to put on the side ofa truck, and then we said, 'My gosh, we can't do that. 'I t was far more suggestive than we realized. We got themessage real quick. That was our first redesign."

A ccording to G ose, the corporate logo has always be ena "very powerful, very recognizable identity from longdistance s. I t was a looser image in ' 7 1 , but i t spoke to

Core Iden t ityThe core of Starbucks' identity the siren logo, steam pattern,logotype, graphic character andorganic, earthy colors is

Coffee PackagingB l en d S t am p sLike steamer-truck stickers from a bygone era,Starbucks' colorful"blend" stamps (above)

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how things were back then. It has evolved to be simpler,with graphically stronger, cleaner lines. But we've heldonto the seafaring n ature of our identity. E ven as w e'veexpanded beyond the port of Seattle, we believe the ideaof coffee coming from far away places by ship to placesacross A merica is sti l l quite powerful. The mythicalcreature from the sea is a link to the exotic, to thepersonal and intuitive in people the choices peoplemake about coffee and the experience that surrounds itsenjoyment are just as intuitive and personal."

O bviously, Sta rbuck s believes it caters to theseaspects of consumer desire better than most, and their

record seems to confirm it . The modern I talian lookthat inspired the expansion and redesign of Starbuckscoffee stores in the mid-80s, just as influential to corporate strategy as the mermaid logo, is now undergoinganalysis and revision. "I think we're moving past [thesleek espresso bar], getting back to what we feel," saysG ose. "W e're not rejecting its influence o utright, butwe need to adapt as our audien ce ch anges. O ur lookneeds to remain relevant to today. I think people arelooking for something to believe in and places to gothat evoke home and comfort in this crazy world.That 's a lot of what we're about."

"Tripleg r a n d eSignature Cup

After study-ing other cup

designs,Starbucks

decided its

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Pla n n in g C o r p o r a te A m e r ic a 'sMo s t Im p o r ta n t C o m m u n ic a tio n :T h e A n n u a l R e p o rtProducing a corporate annual report is a bi t l ike being part ofa bal let company. I t demands knowing your role , fol lowing ther ight s teps , and prec is ion t iming on everyone ' s par t .

Wi th des igners , copywri te rs , i l lus t ra tors , photographers ,t y p e s e t t e r s , p r o o f r e a d e r s , c o r p o r a t e m a n a g e m e n t c o m m i t t e e s ,outside auditors , a t torneys, pr inters and mail ing houses involved,al lot t ing a reasonable amount of t ime for each is cr i t ical toget t ing the job done wel l and on schedule .

I n d e v e l o p i n g a n a n n u a l r e p o r t p r o d u c t i o n s c h e d u l e , m o s texpe r i enced p ro fess iona l s work backwards f rom the com pany ' s

P R O D U C T I O N P H A S E

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C O R P O R A T I O N D E S I G N E RReview, evaluate and research content direction.Establish the report's objectives and parameters.Select designer.

Meet with designer to establish key theme messagesfor year.Gather background materials for copywriter and designers.Coordinate schedules w ith finance department and othersinvolved with the report.Approve concept, budget, schedule and layouts submittedby designer.

Determine photo subjects and locations.Work with designer to coordinate photo shooting scheduleand establish contact person at each location.Initiate draft of editorial text.Verify copy quantity for printing bid and paper order.Review printing bids with designer and select printer.

Develop pagination and prepare sample editorial spreads forclient review.Select paper stocks. Make paper dummies for clientapproval.Prepare overall budget estimates and production schedule.Meet with client to review editorial spreads, budget,schedule, suppliers and photographer/illustrators andget approval to proceed.

Prepare printing specifications and solicit printing bids.Meet with photographers and illustrators to establish visualobjectives for each image. Coordinate schedule and authorizework to begin.Review and revise budget estimate.Develop design concept for maps, graphs and charts.

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Y A N K E L O V I C H S T U D Y

A n n u a lR e p o r t s :W h o R e a d sT h e m a n d

?

A l t h o ug h c or p o r a te A m e r i c as p e n d s as m u c h as $5 bi l l ionp e r y e a r on a n n u a l r e p o r t s, itcon t inua l ly ques t ions whe the rit is get t ing it s money ' s wor th .E s p e c i a l l y in the n o - n o n s e n s e' 9 0 s , s o m e w o n d e r w h e t h e r

\ A / l | i / ' 7 a p l a i n 10-K document wouldsuffice? Or m a y b e it's t i m e to

go electronic and s e n d out f inanc ia l s on C D - R O M ?T h e n a g a i n , w i t h s h a r e h o l d e r s d e m a n d i n g p r u d e n t ,i f not f rugal , f inancia l management , would theybe happ ie r r ece iv ing a thr i f ty- looking report wi th no

pic tu res , g raphs or a p p a r e n td e s i g n ?

A s a m a n u f a c t u r e r of

"The b e t t e rt h e p i c tu r e s ,t h e m o re

"T h e d e s ig nis c r i t ic a l toh e lp in g m a k et h e r e p o r t' w o r k ' f o r t h ec o m p a n y . " S e c u r i t i e s a n a l y s t

But each g roup says it t u r n s to a different par t ofthe book f i r s t . I nves to r s check out the f i n a n c i a ls u m m a r y , e s p e c i a l l y the e a r n i n g s l i n e , and look forp r o d u c t d e v e l o p m e n t n e w s .S e c u r i t i e s a n a l y s t s h e a ds t r a i g h t for the foo tno tes ins e a r c h of j u i c y t i d b i t s l i k el a w s u i t s , a n d p o r t f o l i om a n a g e r s w a n t to k n o w w h a tt h e C E O ' s l e tt e r has to say.

P e r h a p s m o s t i n t e r e s t i n g is tha t mos t of t h o s es u r v e y e d say they don ' t mind hav ing a c o m p a n ys p e n d m o r e for a b e t t e r l o o k i n g a n n u a l r e p o r t aslong as its f i n a n c i a l s are s t r o n g . In fact , a majori tyof por t fo l io m ana gers and i n d i v i d u a l i n v e s t o r s , andnear ly ha l f of t h e s e c u r i t i e s a n a l y s t s , sa y t h a t an


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C o r p o r a t e D e s i g n F o u n d a t i o nCorporate Design Foundation, a non-profit educational institution, was founded on the belief that design can make a majorcontribution both to an individual's quality of life and to acorporation's success and that both individual and organizationalinterests can be served through the effective use of designdisciplines: product design, communication design andarchitecture. Accordingly, our mission is to improve the qualityof life and the effectiveness of organizations through design.

At the heart of this m ission is a focus on education toexpand the awareness of design's potential among corporatemanagers. Through the Design Leadership Programs, theFoundation promotes research and documentation of the roleof design in business and the development of new teachingcurricula and materials for use in graduate business schools.

The Foundation frequently serves as a catalyst wo rking w itheducational and other organizations to achieve the followin g:Create future innovators by includ ing design in the curricula ofleading business schools; develop collaborations betweendesign, business and other schools or disciplines to further theunderstanding of design and use of interdisciplinary teams;achieve an understanding of design and ecologically su stainable development by current business and government leaders.P o tl a tc h C o r p o r a t i o n


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PLACEPOSTAGE

HERE

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