The New Huddle: For Builders, by Builders
Huddle is in a really cool position. Though our core full-time team is currently 12, we have a community of over 600 amazing designers and builders who succeed when we succeed. We also have a platform that can magically pull together a huddle, or super team, around a project in a matter of hours.
So when it came to designing the Huddle brand, the answer was obvious.
We posted a project on our platform and “huddled” Huddle. Within days we had our team: Kyle Makischuk on web and product design, Lori White on copywriting and Michael Taylor (who’s created identities for brands like Asana) leading up logo design and visual identity.
Rewind to late 2020 when Huddle launched. As my fellow designer-founders can probably relate to, our original brand identity was created by me. It was also done in an afternoon and was, honestly, meant to be a placeholder. Two years later, with a community of 600+ and our seed round raised, we were ready to step up the Huddle identity. And most importantly, do it with the right group of people.
Since Huddle’s whole thing is connecting startups with super teams, we knew that great brand and marketing huddle need to…
- Be made up experts who are awesome at what they do (of course!)
- Deeply understand the space and empathize with our audience (in our case, our team was made up of literal Huddle users)
- Be one step removed from the internal weeds of the company to bring a fresh perspective
Fortunately, our badass Huddle Partner Emily Yarbrough (formerly Red Antler) ensured our branding huddle had all three.
From the day we kicked off, I simultaneously breathed a sigh of relief and got extremely excited.
The why
Rebranding Huddle was a nuanced undertaking. In some ways the task was to start from scratch, while in other ways we wanted nothing to change.
The previous Huddle identity, in terms of measurable outcomes, was successful. We were wary of fixing things that weren’t broken. Ultimately, we revisited, solidified and leaned further into our beliefs we’ve had since day one.
We wanted our brand to put a flag in the ground. Our new identity is rooted in the two most important things Huddle does in the world:
- It empowers the brightest minds to be their most creative and entrepreneurial selves.
- It unlocks the power of teams, removing all barriers for people to assemble around ideas.
1. Empowering the brightest minds
Our team is inspired by Rick Rubin in a bunch of ways. When producing for some of the most creative people on the planet, he has an approach that’s akin to a simple gallery wall. He reduces himself in the process, leaving a void for the artist to fill. He even minimizes the design of his studio.
In Shangri-La, Rubin discusses with a philosopher friend the art of not being there, the art of creating space so that something can express itself — so it has room to speak.
We’re really into the art of creating space. Before getting into tech and startups, I was an architect. Mike, my co-founder, actually grew up building houses. So, the two of us often talk about Huddle as a physical space or clubhouse.
We both believe that, at its most fundamental and effective, Huddle is a container where the conditions are right for magical things to be created. Our brand needed to subscribe to this art of holding space for the creative to shine.
Plus, we’re hellbent on giving creators ownership in what they create – both in work they do for startups on the platform and in Huddle itself. The more our members and what they build shine through, the better.
2. Unlocking the power of teams
On our platform, whether you’re a builder or a founder, you’re there to find a huddle — your team that’s ready to build in the same direction you are.
Every time a small group of passionate people get together to work on something they care about, possibility opens up. A new story arc appears. We believe the right people in the right room can build the future they want to live in.
The world is going more entrepreneurial (both founders or freelancers are entrepreneurs, btw). As more top talent seeks independence, we believe magic hangs in the balance of working for yourself and working with others.
Working for yourself means you get to pick where you spend your time, how you want to get compensated, how you want to make an impact. But going independent doesn’t have to mean going it alone. In fact, when it comes to building things that make a dent, it’s almost always a team effort.
Huddle is the collaboration and community layer for the independent worker. We make it possible to work for yourself, not by yourself, making things you love with people you love.
Our logo shines a light on both ideas – reducing to make space and removing barriers to collaboration.
Our new logo
Our “H” tells the story of Huddle’s two core beliefs in five simple shapes.
It most directly speaks to a team coming together. The way it does so is by emphasizing the metaphor of reduction — by subtracting away, it creates unique and organic points of collaboration and connection.
The overall mark is also intentionally tight to evoke a feeling of density and togetherness.
All together now
With our new logo at the center, our branding huddle produced a beautiful and scalable identity. We leaned into white space, crafted a neutral yet vibrant palette and introduced a system of containers and spaces for creativity to fill.
We’re incredible excited about where it all landed and how we’ll expand it over time.
Huge thanks to our awesome brand huddle, MT, Kyle and Lori, and for contributions from Emily, Mike and Zain on the Huddle team.
More to come. 👐
-Steph
→ Apply here to join the Huddle design & build community.
→ Sign up here to pop-up a super team from the badass Huddle community to help design or build your next thing.
Follow @stephgolik or @withhuddle on Twitter for updates. DM me to get an invite code if you don’t know an existing member.
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