Work outside your wheelhouse? Many agencies wouldn’t take it on. Bureau of Everything threw itself into the product design challenge to name and brand a new player on the rapidly growing e-bike market, Flight Risk. In addition to the naming and brand design, the agency also undertook packaging, apparel and created an enduring positioning for the brand – Electric Escape Vehicles (EEVs).
The agency turned it into a labour of love. BoE creative founder, Cam Blackley, stated, “To point creativity at different problems is why Em and I started the BoE. It’s incredibly satisfying for the whole team to work end to end through the manufacturing & design process. We’ve come out the other end with a distinct design aesthetic and physical range of products that could still be here in 100 years albeit as some kind of post-apocalyptic Mad Max vehicles.”
While it isn’t the only e-bike on the market, Flight Risk has features that make it unique – the safest battery on the market, superior power, onboard computer with tracking and security and a unique design and style that makes a statement. It also aims to bring a strong dose of irreverence and spontaneity of spirit to the category.
BoE creative and design director, Michael Kleinman, commented, “Flight Risk takes a highly mischievous approach, mixing aesthetics of high-end streetwear with vintage airline graphics, 80s BMX culture, the GTA franchise and a hint of Y2K indie sleaze. We really sweated the details in the design. FR’s include signature pink custom shock absorbers (their version of Louboutin red soles), individual flight numbers, nicknames names and touches like the L8R decal on the back of the seat – which we know Avril Lavigne would enjoy. The vibrant colour palette, featuring a musk stick pink, is intended to disrupt the bro-ish culture that surrounds the category.”
Founder of the new e-bike brand, Abe Mikhail, added, “We wanted marketing thinking baked into this project. Whilst BoE have deep experience in creativity and advertising, they aren’t yet known for product design. But they clearly got our vision and pitched a process that we just had to take a punt on. Cam and the team went beyond the brief, giving us a lifestyle brand in EEVs that plays to our ambition to be a whole lot more than e-bikes, as well as a sophisticated design system and a name that’s hard to forget. Off a successful launch we’re excited to kick off phase two with BoE in the coming week.”
“This was a design and manufacturing job we’re really proud of. We learned a lot from outside our usual wheelhouse,” Blackley stated. “BTW, The Kid Laroi showed up for the launch event, that’s a pretty great start.”
