Brand Identity Design
nick@elder.studio
Co-Founder & Creative Director
2022 – 2025
Target
Brand Design Lab
Sr. Art Director / Designer
2016 – 2022
Cue, Inc.
Designer
2012 – 2016
OLSON
Designer
2010 – 2012
Larsen
Designer
2009 – 2010
Westwerk Design
Designer
2008 – 2009
Target
Olipop
Jack Daniel’s
Woodford Reserve
Brown Forman
Suncup
TaylorMade
Caribou Coffee
Optum
UnitedHealthGroup
Visual Identity
Packaging Design
Art Direction
Digital
Naming
Environment
Apparel & Merch
St. Paul
Graphic Design
2006 – 2008
Bethel University
Studio Art
2005 – 2006
Normandale College
General Studies
2003 – 2005
Print Magazine
Communication Arts
HOW
Graphis
The Dieline
LogoLounge
952 200 9279
Last Updated 24.10.31
Brand identity and packaging system development for Kindfull, Target’s exclusively owned cat and dog food brand. Creating a world of good for your pet.
Credits: David Hartman, Andrea Hyde, Nick Brue
Illustration: Winneke de Groot, Felix van Dam, Josep Puy
Photography: Josh Grubbs
Danny Del Prado's restaurant in the Armatage neighborhood of Minneapolis integrates the incredibly diverse flavors of Oaxaca with barbecue and smoking techniques from around the world.
Branding for Target’s flagship active lifestyle brand inspiring the potential in every body. Only at Target.
Credits: David Hartman, Missy Wilson, Nick Brue
Photography: Josh Grubbs
Brand identity system for Oncodea, a biotech company bringing the future of early cancer detection to the masses. Oncodea’s proprietary AI-powered technology combines cancer molecular fingerprint data and machine learning to predict results of unknown cancer samples, leading to faster detection and better outcomes.
Credits: Worked completed with DBC
BACKSPACE is a photo studio available for rent on the edge of downtown Minneapolis.
Photography: Nick Fay
Launched in 2017, Goodfellow & Co is Target's menswear and grooming brand that instills confidence with every wear. The brand is focused on efficiency through quality pieces designed to fit.
Credits: Todd Waterbury, Scott Swartz, David Hartman, Steve Jockisch, Ryan Damien, Nick Brue, Anthony Lane, Graham Hall
Illustration: Janne Iivonen
SunCup is an iconic beverage brand with a rich history spanning over 50 years – a family-owned business manufacturing and packaging their assortment of 100% natural juices in the US. Our rebrand presented a bold new expression for SunCup to expand and launch in a retail environment.
Credits: Work completed at DBC
Brand identity for Martina, an Argentinian-Italian restaurant in Minneapolis created by chef Daniel del Prado.
Photography: Caylon Hackwith
Brand development for Target’s Universal Thread Goods Co – a denim brand that builds confidence through feel-good style and quality that lasts.
Credits: Todd Waterbury, Scott Swartz, David Hartman, Steve Jockisch, Nick Brue
Illustration: Land
Brand identity and packaging system for Smartly, Target’s own lower-priced essentials brand. Smartly offers guests reliable everyday items that they can be confident to use and proud to display in their homes.
Credits: Todd Waterbury, David Hartman, Missy Wilson, Nick Brue, Anthony Lane, Mike White, Steve Chirhart, Erin Duffy
Wild Fable is an apparel & accessories brand for young adults. This inclusive, trend-forward brand launched in August 2018 and introduced swimwear in 2023. Wild Fable is designed to let guests create their own styles for life’s many moments.
Credits: Todd Waterbury, Scott Swartz, David Hartman, Missy Wilson, Nick Brue
Photgraphy: Clara Balzary, Josh Grubbs
Full brand development for the original, iconic Penny’s coffee shop in downtown Minneapolis.
Grandpa Josh is a Midwestern meat seasoning company that approached us in need of a brand positioning renovation. We revived the brand by building a colorful backstory and creating a lovable character brought to life in a new brand voice and a modernized Midwestern visual aesthetic.
Agency: DBC
Full brand development for Porzana, an Argentinian steakhouse by Chef Daniel del Prado, located in the North Loop of Minneapolis.
2016 marked 150 years of the Jack Daniel Distillery, the Oldest Registered Distillery in the US. To mark the occasion, we created an identity and system incorporating familiar iconic elements, applied to special packaging, events, advertising and more.
Two special whiskeys also commemorate the historic milestone. A crafted box packages a special, super premium expression of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey. A second expression is a special 86 proof, Old No. 7 Tennessee Whiskey. Both are invitations to celebrate the legacy of a famous American classic.
Credits: Alan Colvin, Nick Brue, Matt Erickson
Agency: Cue
Complete Human seeks to redefine true health and provide the tools to support each person’s unique journey. CH produces high quality, ethically sourced and scientifically backed ingredients to create innovative cutting-edge products for the modern consumer.
Wovenbyrd was born from a passion for helping others build a restful sanctuary at home. It’s their belief that furnishing your dream haven should be easy, affordable and an authentic expression of your personal identity.
El Jimador Tequila had grown to be the number one selling tequila in Mexico. The brand needed a more premium expression to compete in a saturated U.S. market without alienating loyal Mexican consumers. We created a new elevated expression of the brand, validating equities with consumer insights.
We gave the bottle a stronger silhouette, and an embossed jimador on the bottle to strengthen the brand icon. New brand language was created to tell a more complete story, using a seal to authenticate el Jimador’s provenance within the Casa Herradura family. Metallic colors differentiate blanco, reposado and añejo expressions, and a motif of agave and coas reinforce el Jimador’s hand-harvested story.
Credits: Alan Colvin, Nick Brue
Agency: Cue
Brand identity for Neon Tiger, a modern cocktail bar located in the North Loop of Minneapolis.
Photography: Roy Son
Illustration: Arna Miller
A selection of apparel and merch design created and executed for Walmart’s SparkShop.
Illustration: Ilya Milstein
Photography: Nick Fay
Agency: DBC
Greenhouse is a golf-focused, full-service video production house based in Minneapolis.
OURS is a start-up brand providing unique and aspirational baby products for the new modern parent. OURS is committed to the idea that parenting is a shared collective experience and responsibility.
Keep The North Cold – it’s not a slogan – it’s Askov Finlayson’s mission as a Certified B Corp, and a commitment they make each and every day to help protect the very thing that their products are designed to celebrate: Winter. We call this approach Climate Positive, which means taking responsibility for our environmental impact and doing more good than harm. It’s about holding ourselves accountable to the planet and making sure that when it comes to the climate crisis, we are part of the solution.
©N.Brue2025