Bold ideas deserve a brand that’s ready. We’re a branding studio to give founders focus and define your brand in five weeks.
Here’s what we do.
Three ways to work together, depending on where you are.
(87)BrandLaunch
Starting something new?
For founders with an idea and nothing to show for it yet. Positioning, two complete brand directions, social, homepage design, and mockups of the brand out in the world. Everything you need to open in five weeks.
(87)BrandLift
Business grew, brand didn’t?
For businesses where nothing is broken but everything feels slower. We keep what you've built and update the look, the messaging, and the materials your team uses every day. Ten weeks.
(87)BrandLegacy
Maturing into a new vision?
For companies in the middle of a real change. New leadership, a merger, a new direction. We get the leadership team aligned first, then rebuild the brand around where you're headed. Four to five months.
Here’s how it works.
Four steps. One call, one workshop, one direction, then we build it.
What our clients are saying.
I know what it's like to have a big vision that feels stuck.
Hey there, I'm Maxwell Billings. Most people call me Max.
I spent a decade at some of the world’s biggest creative agencies. Then I left to start my own studio, so I could work with founders directly, quickly, and efficiently.
For you, that means no nine-month rebrand. You see two complete directions, pick one, and launch with confidence.
You know the feeling as a founder. You’re not just stuck, you’re buried in the business.
You already know what a brand is worth. You also know how it feels to make a hundred decisions a day.
A fresh brand can create clarity, inspire creativity, build confidence, and spark connection. Often, there are too many options, and you need someone with a fresh perspective to guide you to the next level. Because the hardest part of branding isn’t design. It’s deciding.
Running a brand project is a full-time job on top of the one you already have. They’re simple questions, but hard to answer alone…
What do we even call this?
Who is this actually for?
Do I need a name first, or a logo, or a website?
How do I explain this without sounding like everyone else?
Should I just use a template and fix it later?
Do I hire a freelancer, an agency, or my cousin who does design? What do I really need?
What if I spend the money and hate it?
What if nobody notices?
How much is this supposed to cost?
How long is this supposed to take?
What if we launch and it doesn’t land?
With EightySeven, you don’t have to answer any of this alone. From figuring out what the business will be called to handing you everything you need on launch day. When you look good, we look good.
You’ll make real decisions. Not endless rounds of expensive spin. We’re here to help you decide and define, not just keep exploring ideas.
We present two complete brand directions, side by side, both built out far enough that you can actually see how your business will live within them.
You pick the one that’s yours. We build the rest. You focus on building and running the business. We handle storytelling for the brand.
Working together with weekly check-ins, answering whatever we can along the way.
If you’re sitting on an idea and you're not sure what comes next, let’s get started. We’re happy to guide your next steps, even if it isn't us
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Fair question, and it's the one I'd ask before hiring a creative partner. Because your brand and business are personal. As much as we will be doing design work, there is a bit of “founder therapy” involved as well.
Here's how we handle it. We start by understanding your vision and where you’re going. Then, using our process, we create the story and presentation that supports your vision.
You won't be looking at logos on a blank page with a "what do you like?" attached. You'll see two complete brand directions, both built out far enough that you can see the brand in the world before you commit to it. Then you pick one.
We also bring in specialized talent and support specific to every project. Our systems and storytelling frameworks allow us to direct and deliver big thinking quickly to get you unstuck.
And if you’re not aligned with the two directions we create, we will do two more at no cost.
You should feel proud to put your name on.
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Five weeks is fast because we cut the waiting, not the work.
Most branding timelines are long for reasons unrelated to craft. Scheduling. Slow feedback. Presenting one direction, hearing "can we see a few more," and starting over. That's where nine months go.
We compress the calendar and protect the working time. Same phases you'd get anywhere, run without the gaps. The trade is that you have to show up ready to decide during those five weeks, which is the next question.
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For (87)BrandLaunch, 10-12 hours over five weeks.
Projects start with a half-day workshop, weekly check-ins, and priority support throughout the project. The five weeks only work if you're available for those. If you're about to disappear into a raise or a move, we should start after, not during.
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Sometimes that's the right call, and I'll tell you if it is.
But "fix it later" is a gentle way of saying pay for it twice. You launch with something temporary, you build a year of packaging and content and site around it, and then the rebrand isn't a rebrand anymore. It's a rebuild. People feel it.
A freelancer will give you a logo. That's a real thing, and it has a price. What we're doing is different. Positioning, naming, identity, packaging, social, homepage direction, and everything applied so you can actually open. If a logo is what you need, hire a freelancer.
The same goes for generating it with AI. It's trained on what already exists, so it returns the average. You'll get something that looks like a brand and feels like six others in your category. We’re familiar with the AI options and “solutions” out there; they may be good tools but terrible decision-makers.
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It’s the classic “What do you want for dinner?” problem. Two options are the whole idea. We’re finally forced to make a bold decision on our direction, muah-ha-ha-ha.
But really, presenting twenty ideas on a page and asking you to choose isn’t helpful. It's the designer handing the decision back to you. You end up picking a favorite out of a pile with no idea what you're actually choosing.
You need guidance. The two directions come after Focus, so they're built on the strategy we agreed on together. Either based on what you’ve established, or making the necessary moves to align with your vision.
They're not guesses. They're two legitimate ways to be the company you described, and your brand is what we use to make every decision after that.
They're also not final. You pick a direction, then we apply that blueprint to the key experiences of your brand.
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No. That's the first two weeks.
Most people come in with a business they understand and language they don't. Or a positioning statement someone wrote in a workshop two years ago that nobody uses. If you already have that work done and you like it, we'll use it. If you don't, that's Focus. Either way, you're not behind.
If you need a name, or you have one you're not sure about, we can handle that, but it will take longer than five weeks. Trademark clearance runs on its own timeline and sits outside our control, so final sign-off on a new name typically adds 4-6 weeks based on legal screening.
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Click here to GET STARTED
We’ll ask you 5 quick questions and you’ll pick a time for your call.
Forty-five minutes. We'll talk about what you're building, what's in the way, and whether we're the right fit. If we are, you'll leave with a scope and a start date. If we're not, I'll tell you what I'd do instead.
We can typically begin within two to four weeks of signing.
Common questions that we hear ↘︎
