Flamingo Big Ideas Breakfast

The Architecture of Happiness February 2011

Take-Out Summary

MRS Agency of the Year 2003, 2006, 2009

With Alain de Botton

Flamingo Take-Out Summary

3 3 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Brands and Buildings?

Different histories…

4 4

A tolerated annoyance. But times have changed...

The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

It’s not so long ago that brands were condemned to mostly

interrupt and interfere with people’s happiness

TV shows interrupted by

adverts

Visual interference in your

newspaper

5 5

And with new ubiquity comes new responsibilities...

The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

With new modes of distribution, brands can be anywhere

and everywhere

6 6

Brands are often guilty of presuming

that being tolerated is enough

The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

But problems persist... brands are often very bad at

making people positively happy

7 7

These ideas are as true for brands as they are for homes

and the built environment

The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Alain’s argument about creating spaces that make us

happy applies equally to brand space

•  “Responds to its environment, both geographic and cultural.”

•  “Our modern world values flexibility, informality, new technology,

openness, contact with nature and a lack of hierarchy...[we]

should be attuned to these distinctive priorities.”

•  “Should embody our ideals and subtly remind us of them... help

us to be the people we could be at our best.”

8 8 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Responds to its environment, both geographic and cultural

9 9 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Responds to its environment, both geographic and cultural

10 10 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Responds to its environment, both geographic and cultural

11 11 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Values flexibility, informality, new technology, openness,

contact with nature and a lack of hierarchy

12 12 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Values flexibility, informality, new technology, openness,

contact with nature and a lack of hierarchy

13 13 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Should embody our ideals and subtly remind us of them...

help us to be the people we could be at our best

14 14 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

Should embody our ideals and subtly remind us of them...

help us to be the people we could be at our best

15 15 The Architecture of Happiness: Brands

So, across all the many touch-points of your brand...

•  How does your brand respond to its geographical and cultural

environment? How does it help?

•  How does your brand respond not just to what consumers want, but

the values of modern societies at large?

•  What social ideals does your brand embody and how are you subtly

reminding your audience and consumers of those ideals?

Alain de Botton’s Presentation

Thank you!

If you would like to speak with Flamingo about the themes explored in the

breakfast, and what they mean for your brand…

Please call Adam Chmielowski or Annie Auerbach on:

(+44) (0)20 7348 4950