Defining a Brand

At last a house post, well house-related anyway.

Some of you will know that Andrew Geller the architect of The Cool House, was responsible for quite a few iconic designs for things other than unique summer homes. Geller worked for many years as the head of the Retail Store/Shopping Center Planning and Design departments for Raymond Loewy Associates in New York, where he designed buildings for department stores including this one at Garden City, NY for Lord & Taylor.

As Geller tells the story, in his early years with the firm there was a meeting with people from Lord & Taylor where they realized they did not have a design for the logo. Geller took a sheet of paper and wrote the name Lord & Taylor upside down and a legendary logo was born. If you look at the logo and compare it with Geller's signature on this sketch and you can see the similarity.


As part of the brand definition Lord & Taylor used a red rose as their symbol but it was phased out in the 90s. Now they are attempting the mother of all makeovers and the rose is making a comeback. Artists, photographers and graphic designers have submitted their entries and now they want YOU to help choose the design. Be aware that it's a little overwhelming, lots of designs to choose from. Too many I think, kind of like the dress selection in the Manhattan store. Still, it's a positive sign when business lets the consumer get involved in the process. As long as they don't mess with the logo itself!