This month, we speak to Madison Utendahl, founder and CCO of Utendahl Creative, a black-founded and female-led design agency as she shares her story behind the agency, her inspiration and her best work. 

Tell us about yourself

I first and foremost identify as a storyteller. I was born and raised in New York, where I now live with my partner Lex and our cat, Izzy, and dogs, Lou and Charlie. In 2019, I launched Utendahl Creative, an all-female, Black-owned branding and design agency that is proudly anti-trend and has built and designed cutting-edge brands such as Chris Paul’s Good Eat’n, Halsey’s About-Face, Simon Huck’s Judy, and many more.

Madison with partner, Lex and pets, Izzy, Lou and Charlie

Before launching the agency, I worked on the founding teams of cultural phenomena Last Week Tonight With John Oliver at HBO, 29Rooms from Refinery29, and Museum Of Ice Cream. While the experience of being behind these massive cultural successes is what led to my speciality and expertise in emotional brand storytelling, it also led to a reckoning with burnout, which manifested in physical illnesses for me.

Tilden Cocktails

Since then, I’ve discovered the power of rest, authenticity and self-worth in the workplace not only on an individual level but also for my team and the industry at large, by fundamentally changing the way creatives work through leadership and policy at Utendahl Creative. When I’m not working (or resting!) I can probably be found hosting and creating two of my Instagram original series: The Elephant & Her Name Is.

What is the story behind Utendahl Creative? What inspired you and what is the driving force behind your design studio ?

Utendahl Creative was ideated and born as a rebellion against the millennial startup culture that I, and many of my team members, lived through and suffered as a result of. From years of doing the work on myself, I learned to rewrite the narrative society has instilled in us that burnout is inspiring and the stigma it’s attached to resting. Creating UC was a way for me to share those learnings with the industry and make a direct impact on society, changing the way we work for good.

Photo credit: Collins Nai

Since we launched in 2019, we’re really proud to have built a team and network of highly diverse women from many different cultures, backgrounds and walks of life (which was very intentional). This is what’s given us an edge when it comes to our design and branding output, known for our anti-trend approach that, in an attention economy, allows brands to make an impact, tell a story and stand out.

What was the starting point of your career in the design industry?

My career in design and storytelling began at HBO, as a Producers Assistant on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, at the show’s time of launch through its early days. Given the unique time that I was there, it was a really incredible learning experience that taught me the power of emotional storytelling and going against the trends rather than trying to emulate other people’s successes.

LaDiDa

We learned quickly on the show how following an existing playbook will fall flat, and the impact that carving out your own niche and path can have. That’s something I’ve carried with me throughout my entire career and has led to the anti-trend lens that UC takes to all of its projects.

Which  project are you most proud of and why?

We really are very meticulous about the projects we take on which is why I’m proud of so many, but most recently, we launched Good Eat’n, a plant-based snack brand by Chris Paul, co-created with Gopuff.

Good Eat’n

Utendahl Creative was tasked with creating a brand (inclusive of everything from brand identity and brand strategy to packaging design, art direction, web design, and social design) in a category that felt dull, repetitive, unoriginal, uninspiring and bland. We saw this as an opportunity to rebel against the norm and do something different, creating a brand world that’s fun, flavorful, bold and risky, and it paid off.

Being a Creative in the industry, is the design sector free from gender stereotypes (compared to more “conservative” industries)?

While there are some promising statistics when it comes to our industry, such as 49% of creative roles in the U.S. being occupied by females, and 54.5% of graphic designers in the U.S. being women, there are also harsh realities, particularly when it comes to c-suite and ownership roles. Only 29% of employed creative directors are women, only 3% of creative and design agencies are owned/founded by women, and even fewer – less than 1% – are owned/founded by POC. When it comes to race, it’s also worth noting that only 3% of graphic designers are POC.

These numbers are especially disheartening when you consider the fact that the majority of buying power lands in the hands of women & POC, yet white men are designing and branding 97% of brands in the world – a large percentage trying to cater to groups they’re not part of. This is why it’s so important for brands to bet on small, female-owned, POC businesses, and why our team is committed to proudly being known as the antidote to modern agencies. Through our DNA as a Black-founded, women-led studio, we’re solving for the lack of inclusion of women and POC in this world and are defying the status quo by being proudly anti-trend and getting to the heart of brands with soul, inclusivity and purpose.

If you could share one message with the young women in the packaging community, what would it be?

Moving away from the norm is how you push culture and carve a new lane for yourself. As women, we are often told to play it safe, lean into minimalism and refrain from being loud. Changing the world comes from being unapologetically bold and creatively courageous.

Find out more about Madison Utendahl here and follow her on Instagram.