Roots Connect Roots: Brands, Stories, Cultures, and Glocalizational Design
Xun Zuo
Branding is a window to culture, helping audiences to understand and grasp specific identities, values, and knowledge. However, in today’s society, “over-globalized" brands have lost their role as a medium between culture and users due to their flat and homogenized design. Brands need a new design approach to celebrate diversity, generate a sense of belonging, increase user viscosity, and build community. I believe this approach is story-driven.
Branding Reflects Culture:
This book endeavors to address the challenge of cultural disassociation and alienation that often plagues individuals relocating to New York. The focus of this research is centered on the food and beverage industry, whereby branding design serves as a critical component in reflecting cultures and shaping the user experience. Specifically, the study aims to shed light on the impact of brand design approaches, encompassing visual design, tone of voice, and storytelling, on the user experience.
Connecting People Through Food:
This study aims to explore how food can connect people, particularly New York’s new Asian residents, in a post-epidemic context. Through in-depth ethnographic research and respectful data collection, the study will showcase the potential of glocalization and branding to meet the needs of diverse cultures better. The findings will be presented in a book or a collection of zines.
:
Coherence and Uniqueness:
The first chapter of the book serves as an introduction and overview of the author’s research. Following by that, each successive chapter comprises authentic anecdotes featuring one or more patrons of a designated restaurant franchise, characterized by distinct visual cues while also adhering to the overarching coherence of the publication.
Prototypes, Iterations, and Testing:
I conducted multiple iterations and tests before the final version was finalized and released. During this phase, I focus on developing the visual language design for each section of the book and its architecture and structure.