LDF Network Evening 2015: Thomas Eberwein

London – Brands have to be more willing to have fun with their history, says Thomas Eberwein, founder and director of creative agency Thomas Traum.

One of our guest speakers at last week’s Design in the Age of Anti-authenticity Network Evening, Eberwein said brands must be less sensitive and more flexible when it comes to playing with their heritage. 

Eberwein explained how his creative agency is helping luxury fashion brands Kenzo and Hunter to create new digital aesthetics to communicate their heritage without any sense of nostalgia. ‘We created a hyper-real version of the Scottish highlands, because that’s where the Hunter brand originates,’ he said. ‘But we didn’t want to film there, so we created a weird hybrid between reality and the fake, using 3D programmes.’

The Big Picture: Misappropriated by brands, words including ‘heritage’ and ‘craft’ have lost their meaning for consumers. To learn more about Anti-authenticity Marketing, book your place at Beyond Borders, our Autumn/Winter 2015 Trend Briefing.