Design Ecology! Neo-Green Marketing Strategy

If you're interested in marketing, green issues and design [and can read German] there's a splendid book available called Design Ecology! - Neo-Green Marketing Strategy. Written by Jutta Nachwey and Judith Mair, the book covers the new wave of sustainable and enivironmental marketing here in the new millenium.

The Pitch
"Ecology and sustainability are moving increasingly into the focus of corporate communications. The old visual cliches of the eco-design have been exhausted. Communicating "Corporate Green" is important to many companies. With modern visual language and stylistic diversity, they have changed tactics to fit the modern world.

Design Ecology! presents 70 international brands, from small "self-made" labels to global brands, which exemplify the growing need for sustainability and enivironmental friendliness and the interest in social and ethical issues. All through communication and design strategies and listening to audience needs."

I'm pretty thrilled that Copenhagen Cycle Chic was chosen to be included in the book. The backbone of the blog is the photography, of course, but it has been fun developing a marketing strategy and visual identity. It's a rather unfinished work but a little design recognition warms the heart. And it's always fun to read a review of the design and the blog.

"Director Mikael Colville-Andersen refers to his streetstyle blog as 'Bike Advocacy' The photos, which incidentally are taken on the way to work, kindergarten or the supermarket, focus on the especially chic Copenhagen women on their bicycles.

Over 500,000 citizens cycle each day in the Nordic metropolis and clandestine bicycle capital of the world. Colville-Andersen exploits the wholly unpretentious and yet stylish coolness factor of the bicycle.

It is not a lyrca-clad Lance Armstrong imitation but rather cycling as a 'way of life'. Cozy, trendy and environmentally friendly.

One sees lively ladies in skirts and dresses with waving hair, high heels and together with her boyfriend, a dog in the basket or a child on the back. On an obesity list of 108 countries, Denmark tops the list with the fewest overweight people. Germany is at 61! If you ride to work each day, over a week the calories you have burned is the same as fasting for one day.

The blog has an historical angle, too, like the bicycle's role in the suffragette movement and it links to other witty sites like British Cycle Club 'Tweed', Fahrradsozialismus and there are guest photos of cool bicycle fashion from Berlin, Portland and Amsterdam.

The Cycle Chic concept is mainly communicated through photography and although the photos are often similar, devoted fans are never bored thanks to the diversity of the shots, different angles and the involvement of the urban environment. The main point of the flood of images: Cycling is a cult.

Mikael Colville-Andersen designed the logo [font: Gill Sans] and the entire blog, where he also uses Helvetica Condensed Bold. Since the photos are the primary focus, the logo should be simple and elegant, but as unobtrusive as possible. Nevertheless it is concise enough to be used in different variations on stickers, posters and t-shirts or on a mousepad featuring the Cycle Chic manifesto."

The book Design Ecology! is available on Amazon.de [Germany].