Paul Earle & Co., which has been more or less a proxy for my career itself, has operated at the intersection of brands, innovation, and new enterprise development. Yes, as the diagram above implies (with all due credit to Prof. John Venn and his breakthrough work on set theory).

In specific terms, some challenges I find exciting include:

• Creating rich, dynamic brands for new products… namely, identity systems; the trademark, the logo, the narrative, the graphic and digital design, and related creative output;
• Trademark acquisition and screening as an alternative to creating new brands; sourcing marks with some existing awareness base for specific known business needs;
• New product development… green field concepts, technology repurposing ideas, product extension ideas, and beyond;
• Early stage venture advisory and development… strategy, business plan development, product development, external business development, key personnel/partner recruitment, assistance in fund raising, cleaning out the wastebasket if that’s what’s most needed, and beyond;
• Acquisition analysis and diligence… consultation to sophisticated investors in assessing current investment/acquisition opportunities, sourcing new ones in strategic verticals or simply opportunistically, and beyond; particular intuition for spaces that are either consumer-driven or could/should be; and
• Brand storytelling… any and all opportunities to use compelling narratives and the art of rhetoric to connect with consumers.

Of course, that’s not all, but it’s enough to keep one busy for awhile…