WHAT IS THIS?
Americano is an invite-only creative partner for craft liquor, wine, & hospitality brands.
There’s a good reason you’ve never heard of us.
Americano has existed since 2014 purely through word-of-mouth. We invite brands and entrepreneurs to become members that exude three characteristics:
High Performers - Do they do what they say they’re going to do?
Genuine - Would we go to lunch or dinner together and actually enjoy it?
Has a True Need for Americano - We’re not ones to bring a leaf blower to do a little light dusting.
Americano’s founder, Charlie Poulson, is a transman who started transitioning in 2010, right in the heart of rural Iowa. His sharp observations and calculations of how cisgender men interacted with each other served as a survival tactic and laid the groundwork for what Americano’s expertise is known for today; creating humanistic brands down to every last sensory detail.
A note from Charlie Poulson, Americano’s CEO & CCO:
I’ve been branding and running businesses since I was able to dress myself; choosing basketball gear and cargo shorts (we all have our low moments) over dresses and skirts.
Personally, I’ve experienced the world in many forms: Midwesterner, soft butch lesbian alumni, three-time Elvis Halloween participant, vintage motorcycle mechanic and enthusiast, temporary Italian, and Los Angeleno just to name a few.
This continuous adventure of experiencing the world as a transman has only furthered Americano’s mission of helping brands bring out the truly human aspects that we can relate to.
Kids truly do the strangest things, and in my case, I was no different. I wrote my first contract when I was seven years old that employed my younger brother at my imaginary Pokémon drawing firm for a whopping $5/month. I would spend my days making and remaking various forms of packaging and designing layouts as a kid. Eventually, I went digital and obtained my first copy of Photoshop around age thirteen so that I could make myself look more masculine—using design to show my authentic self.
My goal for every member is to provide calculated, high-quality branding and design that never chooses safe over real. After all, nobody ever starts a business just to look like everyone else.
Over the years we've shared our expertise with these fine folks:
Our members join because of our smart and calculated approach to design.
Every concept with Americano is vigorously tested throughout the full design process until you have a highly marketable and eye-catching product, knowing with certainty that you have arrived at the correct design decisions.
Not even the world’s biggest ego can compete with cold hard numbers, decided by the market, not the founders.
Some of the ways we test our creative concepts and the questions that they answer:
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Artificial Intelligence & VAS
Is your bottle or product the first bottle to be seen on a shelf? Or does your competition stand out more? Visual Attention Software (VAS) tells us which concept is the most eye-catching and why.
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Marketing Matrix
Identify market gaps & windows of opportunity missed by other brands.
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Path of Least Resistance
What will your consumers understand best with the least amount of friction? What’s the best strategy to get your product in front of them?
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Ownability
Could a competitor copy you easily? How unique and ownable is the current packaging? How could it improve?
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Research Surveys
Get industry & consumer thought leader insights with qualitative and quantitative results. Answer the age-old question: Which concept is best? Why is it the best?
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Market Research
Is there a need for your product with a particular group of people that you might have overlooked?
We’re not the horn-tooting type, so we’re lucky that our members are our biggest fans and shred into a solo for us:
“Americano has been a hugely valuable asset for a new project we are building in the beverage alcohol space—serving as a creative partner across the range of market research, solid insights into the cultural design reference, and quality creative output most importantly. Would highly recommend working with them!”
— Pete Nevenglosky
Co-Founder & CEO at Avuá Cachaça, Rare Character Whiskey Co., Fortuna Bourbon, Svöl Aquavit, Drifter Spirits, and Drifter Craft Cocktails
“Working with Charlie at Americano has been a dream. A consummate professional who is remarkably human, I felt at ease leaving a business-critical project in his hands. He came through on every point on the original RFP and more. I feel that I ended up with a well-done microsite that captured my company's overall vibe and included Charlie's brilliant design thinking. I would absolutely recommend Americano for your creative needs-large or small.”
— Lindsay Stuiber
Senior Director of Talent at Change.org
“We all know that a brand is much more than a logo however, having that visual identity is important to associate the feeling that a brand portrays. When I came to Americano, this is where we were stuck, because we had no visual identity and after working with Charlie through the Brand Intensive, he absolutely stunned us with a visual identity that said more than we ever could through color, style, and design.”
