Wendy’s /

Rebranding a beloved American icon like Wendy was a thrilling assignment. Working with Tesser, I selected and auditioned a handful of illustrators, ultimately landing on the brilliant Kathryn Rathke to produce the final result. I drove the project for years, directing and designing hundreds of illustrations and wordmarks and undergoing multiple rounds of qualitative and quantitative testing. In the end, consumers have responded incredibly well to the more authentic, grown-up Wendy. Since the rebrand and store re-image, Wendy’s has enjoyed unparalleled success, enjoying sales increases of a staggering 43% and being named “Restaurant stock of the year” by Yahoo Finance. I was also responsible for in-store art package and signage.

Art Direction / Design Concepts
Firm: Tesser / Creative Director: Tre Musco / Illustrator: Kathryn Rathke