Our story
Our inspiration, our beliefs, the things we stand for and make our hearts tick. Our dream of an Africa unlimited. And the brands that drive it. By having a positive impact, on people in Africa and on people all over the world.
Our clients
A tribute to the beautiful people and brands we’ve team(ed)-up with over the past years. The true purpose pioneers! Without those who believe what we believe in, we would simply be a bunch of lone nuts.
Our team
Meet the people at the core of our emotive branding platform. And the researchers, thinkers, designers, copywriters, photographers and activators. Together bringing meaning to the forefront.
Our heartbeats
Brands are people. And so are we. Our behaviour is what defines us. It’s what brings and keeps us together. And it allows us to give shape, and live up to, the Brand Station heartbeats. This is the way we do things.
African brands that matter.
We won’t talk about Africa seen as the world's trouble child. Left divided and troubled by its colonisers, not so long ago. We won’t talk about the post-colonial and post-apartheid challenges. The new forms of foreign resource exploitation, often going hand-in-hand with corrupt local ‘leadership’. Nope, we won’t talk about the Africa that houses over 15 percent of the global population on less than 3 percent of the global GDP.
We talk about a different Africa. Characterised by humble and friendly people and known for its spirit of ubuntu and hope. Its red fertile soil and an abundance of sun. Its diversity, rhythm and dance. And its ability to learn and adapt. We talk about the future of Africa. With economies powered by free infinite energy. And by skills, collaborations and ideas, born to make things better. We talk about well performing governments and dedicated members of the public and private sector. And their individual and joint efforts to inspire the world. With our Africa. An Africa unlimited.
And that’s why we craft African brands that matter.
Working for impact.
We are a South African owned emotive branding platform, specialized in meaningful development of businesses and brands. We believe that brands play a crucial role in shaping the Africa unlimited we have in mind.
The organizations we team-up with, aim to bring more happiness and joy into our lives. Their brands exist to push us to be better. To think and to do different. By doing so, they improve our wellbeing, and the wellbeing of our communities and our planet. And because these brands are meaningful to us, they have our preference. We want to be part of them, work for them, buy from them and invest in them.
With the Brand Station, we bring meaning to the forefront and craft brands that inspire people to take positive action. To get to results that create impact, we break with outdated conventions, seek boundaries and play a different game.
People are the brand.
Recent research points out that close to 80 percent of the global workforce is disengaged with the brand they work for. In addition, people would not care if 7 out of the 10 brands they know would cease to exist tomorrow. A clear result of too much focus on the bottom line and a lack of empathy amongst most businesses.
We see the growing demand for human centric purpose led brands as a huge opportunity. Emotive brands put the feelings and motivations of the people they work for -and with- at the core. As a result they will gain from a more productive and loyal workforce and from a growing and loyal customer base. No wonder they are likely to outperform their competitors.
To craft an emotive brand, we engage everyone vital to success in a co-creative process. Together with employees, customers, partners and investors we (re)define brand purpose and give shape to brand culture. A brand we all want to be part of.
Science at the core.
Creating emotive brands requires a deep understanding of human emotions, feelings and behaviour. What makes our hearts tick? What drives us to take positive action? What gets us to swap old habits for new ones? And certain brands for others?
The rapid evolution of neuro-scientific research provided us with answers to the questions above. It also allowed our partners at BR-ND in the Netherlands to develop 23plusone. And it gave birth to concepts such as the Golden Circle and the 6 Principles of Persuasion.
We are happy with these scientific methods and practical tools. It enables us to help align organizational goals and ambitions with the drives and aspirations of those vital to success.
Unlocking the magic.
We believe that realizing the dream of an Africa unlimited is best served by open relationships that enable us to work together. And that ensure we keep enjoying our work together. We share talent, expertise and inspiring programs so we can make a difference together.
To craft African brands that matter, we need teams comprised of the best. Be it creative collaborators, professionals and businesses brought forward by the brands we team-up with or teams and individuals on client side. Teamwork makes the dream work.
Kudos to the brands we teamed-up with over the past years!
OUR team
Teamwork makes the dream work!
Kim loves action! Especially the kind of action that benefits the country so close to her heart. With nearly two decades of experience in marketing and brand activation, and with her extensive knowledge of the South African market, Kim makes things happen. With the right people, in the right way, at the right time.
Ruben loves imagining! The prospective of a happier and healthier world, shaped by meaningful concepts, is what keeps him going. As (social) entrepreneur, campaign strategist and brand activist, Ruben excels at connecting dots. The dots that make hearts tick faster and that allow people and brands to get the best out of themselves.
In our world there’s no ‘one size fits all’. Our growing pool of skilled and licensed 23plusone friends -researchers, graphic designers, copywriters, UX designers, audio/visual experts, storytellers, activators and others- allows us to form project teams on ‘make the dream work’ basis.
Kim August
Partner / Emotive Transformer
Ruben Collin
Partner / Emotive Thinker
Mariska van den Brink
Visual Guru
Mahle Kwababa
Word Magician
Elske Nel
Graphic Creator
Vums Mavumengwana
Graphic Conceptor
Kim Lomba
Graphic Diva
Kirsti Hugo
Imagineer
Nadia Nel
Graphic Doll
Andrea Nagel
Word Smith
Wanna join the dream team?
Are you inspired by emotive thinking? Do you possess the mindset and skillset that can help us make more dreams work? We would love to hear more.
Our heartbeats
We seek inspiration. We inspire.
We believe the ability to inspire others is what makes a true leader. We love to be lead. And we love to lead. By inspiration.
We play. Always.
By making complex brand stuff fun, we stay energised and boost creativity. No better way to get to the best results.
We flirt. We hope you do!
Being in the business of making hearts beat faster, we love to start with yours. And our own. It takes two to tango right?
We work. Best together.
Enjoying each others unique skills, we love teaming-up to create magic. When it works best, we work in our own space.
We take responsibility. We own it!
We thrive with a certain level of autonomy. Although scary at times, being responsible, it thrills us.
We are straight-forward.
By always speaking our mind we stay true to ourselves and to the trust we have in each other.
We learn. Every day.
We know a lot, but definitely not everything! We're never shy to ask and always eager to learn.
We are in business.
As much as we believe in 'doing for good', we're a business. We charge for our work, for your and our business to grow.
We think emotive.
We are human. And so are the people we work for and with. We always keep the human aspect at the core.