Marks' Kurt Kretten: 'Your Brand Is How You Make Someone Feel in Real Life'

Logos are great, but there's a broader context at play

“I used to think the logo was the heart of a brand, but the brands winning today put their energy into what actually matters to people,” says Kurt Kretten, global chief creative officer at Marks. “Nobody really experiences a logo, but they experience how a brand shows up in their life. A logo still matters, but the context around it matters far more.”

With over 20 years in the industry, Kurt is a multi-disciplined designer working across brand design, product development, advertising and film.

We spent a few minutes with Kurt to learn about his background, inspirations and how the biggest ideas happen in little rooms.

how marketers and designers must always be ‘people-first.’

What’s your “off-brand”? (e.g., something you do or like that is completely out of character.)

I’m a city kid who loves to garden. A day spent in the garden is my idea of a perfect day. And nowadays, I get fewer of them.

What creative hill would you die on?

The biggest ideas happen in little rooms. Being in the room is everything, and recent research backs it up. Face-to-face work produces more ideas and better ones.

What’s a source of inspiration you return to constantly?

Books. I read a ton, but even being surrounded by ones I haven’t read makes me inspired.

What’s your favorite productivity shortcut?

The Notes app. Your phone is always in your pocket, and ideas happen almost all the time. So, I’m constantly dropping notes to myself. I have a running note called “Conversations,” where I jot down topics bubbling up with people I admire. One recent thread was about “community”—probably the most overused word in culture right now. Following someone or liking a post doesn’t make you part of a community. Real community takes real time: shared experiences, shared values and showing up as yourself, not just giving a like.

What’s one tool that changed how you work?

The pen. Physically taking notes and the act of writing something down rewires how you think. AI is great, but there’s no substitute for paying attention and putting pen to paper. Sketching is good for the soul, too. Creatives who learn to sketch and take notes by hand have a real edge.

What’s overrated in marketing right now?

Content and the pressure to make more of it. Most of it is never seen and the rest is ignored. Stop. Do a few things exceptionally well, with the highest craft you can. Invest in human creative capital and people will respond.

What was the last campaign that made you think, “I wish I made that”?

Nike and Josh Safdie‘s “Sleep Well, N.Y.” spot with Billy Joel—released moments after the Knicks won the title. I’m a huge Knicks fan and was in NYC for the OG and “Hand of God” moment. So it hit home.

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Tell us about a recent project you’re proud of.

As a comic book nerd and NBA fan, seeing the work our team did for Puma and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles at the NBA All Star game is a big highlight. Turning a creative idea into an experience that genuinely resonates with fans is hard. And we understand how fans think and engage. We built an immersive experience across three locations that pulled people into the Turtles’ world, from the pizza joint to the lair to the lab. The fans came first, and the brand made the moment possible.

You’ve got 2 minutes with the industry. What’s your hot take?

Experience is identity. You can craft the perfect font and pick the perfect color, but your brand is how you make someone feel in real life. Marketers and designers get so wrapped up in our own self-worth that we forget we’re people first. It doesn’t matter what the brief said or how much freedom the client gave us. What matters is how we made someone feel in the fleeting moment we had their attention.