👋 Hello Branding Revealers. How are you doing today?
Today, we have a powerful conversation, and it feels good to see possibility in action. As a creative, this Q&A resonated deeply and intentionally, like a new mentor or teacher stepping onto the stage.
When the student is ready the teacher will appear. When the student is truly ready... The teacher will disappear.
The mission of Your Branding Letter is to demystify the big word Branding. I hope everyone understands its paradoxes and truths and implements them in their approach to branding. Here, you will find ideas, investigations, and a collection of eclectic definitions alongside visions of what branding is and what it implies—showcasing those who do, use, and expand branding: The Brand Revealers.
🎯 Wise words from Brand Revealer: Radim Malinic
How did Radim come onto my radar? I would say it’s a case of one guest leading to another. A few months ago, I featured the smart and talented Sam Thorogoodin the newsletter, and he shared some inspirations to elevate branding efforts. Among his recommended books was one of Radim’s works. That’s also when I discovered Radim’s Branding Love Letter for Marshall. From there, it was a simple yet addictive journey, going from one piece of content to the next. I am excited to introduce you to the creative force disrupting what creative leadership and entrepreneurship stand for.
☕ Grab some tea or coffee and let’s go!
The interview with Radim
Bright brands and news of the week
Who are you?
My name is Radim Malinic. I am a designer and author.
Branding is an opportunity to tell the world what we stand for and to showcase our values and intentions in the marketplace.
Radim
Branding is made of trial and error. The positioning takes effort, time and dedication. How can entrepreneurs recover from a branding that doesn't resonate yet with their audience?
Branding is an eternal journey to keep in line with ever-changing times. No brand has ever succeeded by producing just one set of identity assets, products, or campaigns. We evolve as individuals, learn from our mistakes, and observe our surroundings to see where we fit and don't fit. We have always learnt how to adapt. This is the first step in fixing what doesn’t work. Everything is a work in progress. Every brand is a work in progress.
Radim
What are the repeated words you hear about your Brand and Branding from your audience, teams, and people who discover you? (3 to 5 keywords).
✦ Positive ✦ Colourful ✦ Engaging
Radim
What is your best branding story from clients, yourself or an iconic brand?
I love an underdog—a brand that is scrappy and super ambitious in its pursuit of greatness. It’s easy to be a great-looking brand when there are huge resources and funding available. The real magic happens when a brand without deep pockets, succeeds despite the odds stacked against it.
Radim
Do you have any recommendations for mastering branding, such as books, podcasts, conferences, etc.?
This is the transcription of the audio responses from the post. They were edited for clarity and readability.
Do you remember that AHA moment when you decided to add publishing and writing books to your branding world?
I didn’t have a true “aha!” moment until I decided to start writing books. Before that, I dabbled in creating small promotional content for quite a while. As a freelance designer, illustrator, and art director, I was always searching for new clients. I wanted a way to showcase my portfolio and body of work in a printed format that I could send out to people. But it took a few years before I realized I could actually translate the things I spoke about in my keynotes, design festival talks, and speeches into written form.
It was during these talks that I first began verbalizing my creative process and thinking through my work in a structured way. I found myself trying to explain my approach to people after the talks, which made me think: Why not put it all into a book? This led me to finally start writing down my ideas.
I have always been eternally curious—especially about things that don’t work. I don’t like repeating mistakes. I want to identify problems, sort them out, and then move on to solving the next one. This mindset shaped my approach to book writing.
One of my early projects was called The Book of Colours. At the time, a lot of my work revolved around color. When it came to writing my first proper book, I thought, Why not call it The Book of Ideas? Initially, my work wasn’t necessarily driven by ideas—it was more about visual finesse and mastering software skills. But when I started putting the book together, I realized that everything in it boiled down to a single concept per page. It was about how one solid idea can fuel an entire creative piece.
As I progressed, I wanted my book to do more than just showcase visuals. I wanted it to be useful—especially for junior creatives and up-and-comers who often struggle with understanding what’s expected of them. When you’re starting out, it’s easy to feel lost, unsure of how to fit in, and unclear about what’s required to produce quality work. My goal was to demystify this process and help creatives actually enjoy the work they do by providing clarity and direction. That’s the motivation behind my books: to make the creative journey a little less daunting and a lot more enjoyable.
Radim
How do you navigate projects under your personal brand and those under Brand Nu? How has the dynamic evolved over the years?
It’s a simple answer: everything that Brand Nu does now is client-driven. Meanwhile, everything I work on personally, I try to do under my own name.
In the past, a lot of my creative pursuits—gallery shows, side projects, and little experiments—were all extensions of Brand Nu. But now, I treat them as independent projects under their own identities. I want to be recognized as an author, so I focus on writing, creating, and exploring different areas, like writing articles and books. Brand Nuitself is dedicated to helping clients with visual storytelling. There’s also Brand Nu Books, which is the publishing arm for my books.
Recently, I launched a completely separate project called Lux Coffee Company. It’s a coffee brand created by and for creative people. It’s a distinct entity, separate from Brand Nu, but still very much rooted in the creative world.
Radim
You embody a free creative who can venture into a passionate field and make a business out of it. This is not the case for many creatives. What has helped you build a strategic creative brand?
It's experience! Launching a business is all about experience and understanding what it really takes to make it happen. At first, every passion project might feel like just a side project—something you do on the side for fun. Over time, these projects can teach you a lot, but they don’t always lead to something bigger. I see side projects as temporary fillers, like: “I need to work on this for a bit, and then I’ll see what happens next.” But my focus has shifted. I’m now fully committed to building new businesses, even if it takes my attention away from, say, the studio or other ventures. It’s a matter of asking, “Where do we go next?” We only have a certain number of years to be interested in one thing before we naturally evolve and move on to something else. What I’m doing now with my creative business exploration is laying the groundwork for the next steps.
That’s why we’re planning more books. That’s why I launched Lux Coffee Company. And that’s why I’m pursuing a few other business ideas. It’s all about growth—about figuring out how to move forward from what we’re currently doing. As much as I’ve loved every stage of my career, I know there’s a point where it’s time to move on. It’s an emotion we don’t like as creatives because we want to keep doing the one thing that’s working for us forever. But change is inevitable. It’s going to happen and It will happen. The key is to have a plan for where you want to go next, so you’re not caught off guard when it’s time to make that transition.
Radim
A brand that surprises its audience is a long-term teacher. Do you have such a brand as an inspiration in your journey?
I’m really struggling at the moment to think about brands that inspire me. Even as I listen to podcasts and think about it, I can't seem to land on The One. The things I wear and use change frequently. Take Apple, for example. They don’t surprise me; they’re just a trusted company. I enjoy my music brands, like Marshall, which has a contemporary feel based on legacy design. They produce incredible amplifiers. I chat about this a lot, because, at heart, I’m still a musician. These guys have transformed something old looking into something iconic. I love that they’re reinventing the way we can pursue sound.
Radim
Which brands, in your panel of collaborations and partnerships have reignited your creative mission to educate, if any?
I work with many different brands, and sometimes, there isn’t much time to think deeply about their missions. You can just try to help them pursue what they need to pursue. However, working with NGO brands like WWF and USAID, which are brands with a huge purpose behind them, it has been particularly impactful. It really makes you reflect on your own actions, business, and mission.We also worked with a French ice cream brand called Extreme for a long time, which I still need to feature on my website. With brands like this, we explore the fun aspects of life and how we feel while interacting with things around us. This opens the door for beautiful, joyful, and artful storytelling. It extends creative mission beyond strategy; it’s about tapping into pure feelings and creativity.
Radim
You can connect and discover his mindset and work@Radim Malinic
🔎 Creatives who write (Austin Kleonleads the way for many creatives and brand builders. He not only created an entire economy around his books, but also showcased an engaging framework to start… now!).
I leave you with the song selection by Radim. Sending bright vibes 🌱 Keva.
I hope you enjoyed this new interview. Thank you for being here! If you enjoy the content and believe in what I am building here, consider becoming a paid subscriber. Your support would mean the world to me and help keep the vision growing. You can also find more ways to share the love here. Do you want to become a sponsor? You can check out my new offers down below.
Brand Revealer #20: "Every brand is a work in progress" with Radim Malinic
yourbrandingletter.substack.com
Your Branding Letter
An investigation of what Branding is and how it is perceived. My insights on intuitive Brand making with tips and vision from Brand heroes & heroines: doing and making Branding. Capturing definitions and ways of Branding to demystify the ''Big word''.
An investigation of what Branding is and how it is perceived. My insights on intuitive Brand making with tips and vision from Brand heroes & heroines: doing and making Branding. Capturing definitions and ways of Branding to demystify the ''Big word''.
Brand Revealer #20: "Every brand is a work in progress" with Radim Malinic