I bring a smorgasbord of creative prowess and leadership acumen...
• Over 18 years of creative expertise spanning diverse industries such as retail, quick-service restaurants, consumer electronics, outdoor living, healthcare, and health + wellness.
• Proven track record in building/managing new and established brand portfolios, ensuring cohesive visual and narrative strategies that resonate with target audiences.
• Known for fostering a spirited, positive and enjoyable atmosphere in creative team management and cultivating strong relationships with partners and stakeholders — let's laugh and create something exceptional together!
• Demonstrated success in building and leading comprehensive creative teams (including designers, art directors, writers, videographers, and project managers) from inception, and managing established teams with up to 8 direct reports.
• A knack for identifying and recruiting the right creative candidates for open creative team roles
• Extensive experience across various creative projects, from brand development and omni-channel campaigns to video/photo productions, experiential/tradeshow design, compelling digital content, and e-commerce and informational website creation.
• Ability to identify, innovate and implement creative workflows and methodologies to optimize efficiency and elevate output quality.
• Skilled in managing relationships with external agencies to deliver collaborative and impactful creative solutions.
• Background in graphic design with a hands-on approach — I thrive on rolling up my sleeves and contributing creatively when necessary.
• Proficient in crafting concepts, headlines, and long-form content as required.
i’ve worked in the creative industry for 18 years…
how to get in touch with me:
e-mail: dankusz@gmail.com
cell: 651-247-9320
Caribou Coffee - Nov 2023 - Present
Manager, Brand Design
OHC (Element, TYTUS & Nomo brands) - Feb 2019 - Nov 2023
Director, Creative
Target - Sept 2018 - Feb 2019
Art Director (Digital)
Patterson Companies - Dec 2007 - Sept 2018
Creative Director
Education
Associates Degree in Multimedia & Design
Minnesota School of Business
2002 - 2004
Volunteer Experience
Director, Creative & Brand
Secondhand Hounds
2013 - 2015
i’ve had the pleasure of working with some of the most talented and compassionate creatives…
“My goal in creative leadership is to cultivate an environment where people can laugh, be themselves, love showing up to work and feel emboldened to create their best work possible.”
Check out my work…
PROJECT: CARIBOU COFFEE FALL 2024 PRODUCT LAUNCH
MY ROLE: CREATIVE/ART DIRECTION, DESIGNER, CREATIVE BRIEF DEVELOPMENT
CAMPAIGN ETHOS (WRITTEN BY ME):
Embrace the enchantment of fall by transporting our team and guests into a realm of dreamy beverages that are oh-so-real. Whether craving the warmth of a hot brew to warm your spirit, or the chills of an icy delight to awaken your senses, let Caribou be your companion in savoring in these unforgettable moments of joy and tranquility amidst the magic of fall.
PROJECT: Caribou Coffee LAVENDER & Summer LTO Launch
My role: I was responsible for translating the marketing brief into a creative brief for our agency. After defining the strategy, I played a key role in guiding both our internal creative team and agency through the production of all creative materials ensuring written and visual consistency for the launch. This included offering creative direction during photo and video shoots and guidance during the creation of all assets. Check out a sneak peek of the final visuals:
PROJECT: TYTUS BRAND REFRESH
MY ROLE: CREATIVE DIRECTOR / WRITER
BRAND ARCHETYPE: THE MAVERICK
TYTUS was lacking any sort of meaningful identity to stand out in an overcrowded industry of grill brands. However, the product is an absolute game changer. An island grill that you can setup within 5 minutes, with no tools and gives you the full functionality of an outdoor kitchen for half the price. It needed a brand identity to match. Insert the Maverick archetype. TYTUS is pushing back on the grilling industry and is ready to make everyone a backyard boss. Here’s how it all came together.
Creative Team: Daniel Anderson (Art Director), Brandon Vacco, Spencer Peterson, Amaya Nordos (Designers) Ryan Russie & Sarah Hellier (Video Production)
LONG-FORM BRAND LAUNCH VIDEO:
BRAND GUIDE PREVIEW:
SALES PRESENTATION SLIDES:
BRAND PHOTOGRAPHY:
MISC. BRAND CONTENT:
PROJECT: NOMO SMART CARE BRAND DEVELOPMENT
MY ROLE: CREATIVE DIRECTOR / WRITER / WEB DESIGNER
BRAND ARCHETYPE: THE CAREGIVER
Nomo Smart Care is a new technology designed to allow caregivers to provide care for their loved ones from anywhere in the world. While the primary target for the brand is the aging population, we didn’t want it to come across like most senior living brands which tend to feel very outdated, filled with cheesy stock photography and over-used language like peace of mind. The brand needed to feel joyful, optimistic and instill confidence. We wanted the audience to know that at the end of the day, with Nomo, living alone can be safe and worry-free. So here is where we landed.
Creative Team: Daniel Anderson (Art Director), Brandon Vacco, Spencer Peterson, Amaya Nordos (Designers) Ryan Russie & Sarah Hellier (Video Production), PixelFarm (Animation Studio)
BRAND GUIDE PREVIEW:
WEBSITE:
RETAILER CONTENT:
30-second brand launch ads:
PROJECT: ELEMENT ELECTRONICS BRAND REFRESH
MY ROLE: CREATIVE DIRECTOR / WRITER
BRAND ARCHETYPE: THE EVERYPERSON
TYTUS was lacking any sort of meaningful identity to stand out in an overcrowded industry of grill brands. However, the product is an absolute game changer. An island grill that you can setup within 5 minutes, with no tools and gives you the full functionality of an outdoor kitchen for half the price. It needed a brand identity to match. Insert the Maverick archetype. TYTUS is pushing back on the grilling industry and is ready to make everyone a backyard boss. Here’s how it all came together.
Creative Team: Daniel Anderson (Art Director), Brandon Vacco, Spencer Peterson, Amaya Nordos (Designers) Ryan Russie & Sarah Hellier (Video Production)
BRAND GUIDE PREVIEW:
SALES PRESENTATION SLIDES:
PROJECT: PATTERSON COMPANIES BRAND REFRESH
MY ROLE: CREATIVE DIRECTOR / WRITER / DESIGNER
The goal of this project was to visually align our businesses and deliver more consistent, unified and recognizable communications to both internal and external stakeholders. Patterson had multiple business units all with varying brand positioning and visual systems - so we needed to create a more unified and complimentary brand system that could be scalable as the company grows.
The updated brand standards reflect trends that were identified during a comprehensive audit of the content being created by the internal Creative Services Group over a few years. This exercise illuminated opportunities to streamline our branding across the organization so that we can execute smarter, faster and better content while communicating clearly and concisely. This process included months of internal stakeholder interviews, a comprehensive brand audit and written/visual concepting before we finally landed here.
Creative Team: Daniel Anderson, Leslie Delzell & Clair Tyra (Art Directors), Rachel Manz & Trish Santarius (Designers), Jon Minnick & Sarah McNeal (Copywriters)
