Brands need a consistent identity, personality and tone to be recognized in the market, but how exactly is a brand story born? Does it already exist, just waiting to be uncovered, or is the story created from scratch?

These answers are found in the discovery phase.

I took to the streets in one of my favorite St. Paul locations, Selby Avenue, and looked closely at things I saw. A street bleeding a story. Vines crawling up brick walls, worn awnings with bold stripes, huge drain pipes, building permits taped to doors — all very different elements that find themselves pointing to a single story.

Discovery is my favorite phase in the creation of a brand story. Sight, sound, smell, touch and taste intertwine to find unexpected insights – only then to be picked down to a single message. A story.

What do you make of Selby Avenue? Is it all wine, streetlamps and W.A. Frost – or is there a different story?