Putting the ‘P’ In ‘Personal Styling’ for Pia Ria
Creating a Bold and Personal Brand Identity for Pia Ria, Personal Stylist
At Otherwhere, we had the pleasure of working with Pia Ria, a personal stylist based in New York with an impressive professional background. Pia has worked with renowned publications like Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, and Interview magazine, as well as big names like Oscar de la Renta and Dakota Fanning. Despite her notable experience, Pia sought a rebrand to better reflect her vibrant, bold, and unique aesthetic while targeting a specific audience: busy moms, internet personalities, chronically online individuals, and people who love bold fashion but feel overwhelmed by creating a cohesive wardrobe.
Why the Rebrand?
Pia’s Previous Logo + Website Design
Previously, Pia’s branding didn’t align with her personal styling goals. Having focused primarily on professional styling, she had not emphasized her personal styling services. With this rebrand, Pia aimed to create a brand identity that reflected her personality, showcased her services, and connected with her new target audience. She wanted to emphasize her ability to design bold, colorful wardrobes tailored to her clients’ routines and personalities, while maintaining accessibility and professionalism.
Her original branding didn’t reflect her current goals, and she wanted to revamp her identity to advertise her personal styling services alongside a refreshed website. Pia’s vision was clear: she wanted her branding to represent her grit, boldness, and funkiness while being approachable to those who might feel intimidated by her style. As a single mom herself, she also wanted to connect with people in similar situations who value practicality but crave a unique, expressive wardrobe.
How We Got Involved
Youtube Channel of Our Co-founder - @Gloriacondy
Pia reached out to us after watching some YouTube videos from one of our co-founders and resonating with our bold and creative style. She shared that she had explored many other designers but felt our work reflected the type of brand identity she envisioned. She appreciated how personal and detailed our approach is, which aligned with her desire for a brand identity that was a true reflection of her personality and values.
The Project Brief and Collaboration
A curated Pinterest mood board featuring eclectic inspirations for the Pia Ria rebrand, from Y2K aesthetics to bold maximalism.
Pia’s goals for her brand identity were clear: it needed to feel personal, gritty, bold, vibrant, and reflective of her own story as a single mom and her ability to cater to busy individuals. During our initial brand strategy session, we:
Explored her goals and vision.
Reviewed her mood board, discussing specific elements she liked, including color palettes, illustration styles, and textures.
Discussed her aesthetic influences, such as the Y2K movement, avant-garde elements, and nostalgic graphics.
We also examined competitors in the personal styling industry and found that many catered to "Pinterest moms" with a popular and safe aesthetic. Pia wanted her brand to stand out by appealing to those who appreciate funkiness, maximalism, and vintage-inspired styles.
Pia’s mood board and inspirations were eclectic and vibrant. She highlighted her love for gritty, textured backgrounds, Y2K-inspired illustrations, and avant-garde elements. She also wanted to retain a few elements from her previous branding, like specific colors, while ensuring the new design was cohesive and representative of her unique personality.
The Design Process
Research and Strategy
A slide from Pia Ria's brand discovery session, highlighting the detailed approach to understanding her client process and unique vision.
Before we start any brand identity or design project, we conduct a strategy session with a customized presentation based off of our initial meeting. Our process began with understanding Pia’s values and how she approaches her work. She emphasized her ability to get to know her clients deeply, designing wardrobes that fit seamlessly into their lives. This personal touch became central to the brand’s visual identity. During our discussions, Pia also shared stories about her journey, her clients, and her stylistic inspirations. We created a research document summarizing her goals, vision, and design challenges to guide the creative process.
Color Palette and Typography
Pia’s mood board as well as previous branding heavily influenced the color palette, which included vibrant purples, pinks, oranges, and electric yellow-green tones. To balance these, we added a vintage-inspired beige, as Pia disliked white backgrounds. This beige added warmth and a nostalgic touch that complemented her bold colors.
Custom typography and color palette designed to reflect Pia Ria’s vibrant, nostalgic, and bold aesthetic.
The typography paired a retro serif font (New Spirit Condensed) with a modern sans serif (Obviously), creating a blend of vintage and contemporary styles.
Logo and Graphics
The new Pia Ria logo combines retro script fonts with playful graphic elements, representing her dynamic personality.
We updated Pia’s logo with a script font paired with a sans serif, personalizing the design with a star replacing the dot in the "i." This playful detail reflected Pia’s vibrant personality and dynamic approach.
A collection of bespoke graphic stickers inspired by Pia Ria's personal anecdotes, humour, and maximalist style.
Additionally, we created custom graphics inspired by her anecdotes. One notable inclusion was a reimagined pineapple with sunglasses from her first logo, reflecting her humor and maximalist personality. She also shared her admiration for "unserious adult" aesthetics and corny internet graphics, which we incorporated into quirky, nostalgic designs.
Pia’s love for trinkets, bold patterns, and long nails—a nod to her urban influences—was also integrated into the graphics. For instance, we illustrated her personal style through motifs that celebrated bold, expressive fashion and cultural influences.
Avoiding Clichés
Pia Ria’s updated brand identity in action, featuring cohesive design elements across social media templates and branding materials.
Instead of a traditional brand pattern, we used color gradients and bespoke graphics to add depth and modernity. These elements highlighted Pia’s ability to combine patterns, textures, and styles into cohesive looks, resonating with her target audience while reflecting her unique aesthetic.
Challenges and Solutions
One of the biggest challenges was balancing Pia’s bold, edgy style with the need to keep her brand accessible to a broad audience. Pia’s preferences leaned towards maximalism and nostalgia, but we ensured these elements were integrated in a way that felt polished and professional. By incorporating nostalgic and avant-garde elements in a structured, organized manner, we created a cohesive and approachable identity.
Deliverables and Final Touches
After finalizing the brand identity, we delivered:
Logo variations.
A versatile color palette with gradients.
Custom graphics inspired by Pia’s personality and stories.
A detailed brand identity guide.
We also began working on her website, which we’ll discuss in a future blog post. Pia’s rebrand emphasized collaboration, with frequent Zoom meetings and shared documents to ensure alignment despite being on opposite sides of the world.
Pia was thrilled with her new brand identity, describing it as a perfect reflection of her bold personality and professional expertise. While we’re awaiting measurable results, Pia’s positive feedback and excitement about her new branding reaffirm our process and dedication.
Why Invest in Professional Branding?
As a studio based in Seoul, we emphasize our ability to work with global clients like Pia. This project demonstrates the value of investing in a professional brand identity, especially for personal stylists. A cohesive and polished brand creates trust by signaling care and professionalism. When clients see a legitimate business logo, website, and branding, they are more likely to invest in those services.
For personal stylists, a strong brand identity reflects the same level of care and attention to detail they bring to their clients. It’s a visual promise of quality and dedication, which resonates deeply with potential clients.
Why Choose Otherwhere?
If you’re a personal stylist looking to refresh your brand or a bold brand ready to make a statement, contact us at Otherwhere. Our collaborative approach, attention to detail, and dedication to creating personalized brand identities make us uniquely qualified to handle projects like Pia’s. We take pride in listening to our clients, understanding their vision, and creating designs that truly reflect their personality and goals.
Let’s Create Something Bold Together!
Whether you’re drawn to Y2K aesthetics, bold maximalism, or vibrant colors, we’re here to bring your vision to life. Reach out to us today to start your branding journey.
If you're seeking a partner to create engaging, informative materials for your projects, we at Otherwhere are ready to help! Contact us today to discuss how we can support your next project.
