Tomorrow will not look like yesterday
We are a design agency founded by David Butler and Stefán Kjartansson, with deep expertise designing branding systems for early-stage startups to global giants.
We connect systems thinking to create modular branding systems that deliver consistency with flexibility, building brand equity and relevance over time. This approach is more critical than ever as AI changes how brands are discovered and perceived.
By balancing scale with rigorous design standards, we ensure your brand is found while deepening the human connection that shapes the brands people love. We’ve used this framework to help global brands like Coca-Cola regain relevance, late-stage startups like Markforged go public, and early-stage innovators like Early Majority.
Our approach helps build equity over time with the flexibility to stay relevant into the future
Three years ago, we said tomorrow wouldn’t look like yesterday. Now that tomorrow is already here, we’re busy designing what's next.
In the past, technology evolved slowly, giving brands time to adapt. Those days are over. Change now happens simultaneously as generative models reshape how brands are discovered.
And it’s happening with or without us.
At SoWhat, we help navigate this velocity—using systems thinking to scale into the future without losing the human authenticity that makes us love brands.
+ Named Coca-Cola’s first head of design; part of a turnaround team that led to doubling the value of the company.
+ Best-selling author of, Design to Grow: How Coca-Cola Learned to Combine Scale and Agility (and How You Can Too), published in over in 25 languages.
+ Recognized as a Master of Design by Fast Company and named to Forbes’ Executive Dream Team.
+ Co-founded Coke’s first global venture platform.
+ Over 25 years of experience helping companies transform their brands.
+ Named CNN.com’s first Executive Creative Director; part of the founding team.
+ Co-founded the brand and experience design company Armchair, acquired by IfThen.
+ Branded Markforged IPO strategy.
+ Joined Early Majority founding team playing a critical role in securing funding.
The agency’s name is based on the track So What from the album Kind of Blue. Miles Davis composed it in 1959 as the world was entering a decade of unprecedented change.
His approach was revolutionary. It balanced experience with talent and structure with improvisation, resulting in the best-selling jazz album of all time.
We believe brands can learn from the confidence to stand for something and the courage to embrace the future.
