Our friends at Skid Row Housing Trust, a nonprofit organization committed to ending chronic homelessness through permanent supportive housing, are always creating new solutions to raise awareness and much needed funding. They decided on a concept for a new social enterprise, Skid Row Denim Academy, a line of couture denim designed and handmade in Downtown LA. The brand would combine Downtown LA’s rich history of the fashion and garment districts, with today’s new rise of creative businesses moving into the neighborhood. The Skid Row Denim Academy would provide job training and mentorships to formerly homeless residents of The Trust, while engaging and activating the new wave of younger creatives moving into all areas of Downtown.

We created an identity system and brand language that would speak to the ideas and mission of The Trust, while evoking the tone of a fashion brand that’s serious about its designs and products. This system included copywriting that spoke of the mission, as well as visuals that harkened back to LA’s golden years of fashion and the unfortunate birth of Skid Row. This early century, revolutionary appeal needed to be influenced by a very contemporary look that matched the sensibility of Downtown LA today. Drawing upon Agit Prop aesthetics and art deco design, we updated the system to a proprietary identity that speaks of both the mission and the product across store design, clothing labels, website, and even the events and social media of The Academy.

Logo Design
Photography Art Direction
Type System / Color Palette
Product Naming / Label Design
Tone of Voice / Brand Copy
Marketing / Email Design
Poster / Flyer Design
Tote Bag Design