At the end of the 2024–25 season, the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) announced the addition of its Seattle franchise. While this expansion team is still unnamed, creative agency VSA Partners couldn’t wait to welcome the team to the league.
Meet the Seattle Mutiny—a potential new name and brand identity for the team, created by VSA Partners.
“This was a passion project for sure,” said Associate Creative Director of Design Heather Stickney, who brought the opportunity to her team at VSA Partners. “I’ve been a Seattle Kraken fan since I moved to the area a few years ago, and I was really excited to hear we were getting a professional women’s hockey team. It felt like a way I could give back to my community and further advance women’s sports.”
Heather was quickly joined by Janelle Blasdel, Creative Director of Writing, to tackle naming and branding the team, along with Cody Fenske, Associate Creative Director of Design, for design support. The team treated the project as if it came from a client brief, exploring a broad range of names and territories.
“We knew we needed a clever, eye-catching design system that nods to Seattle’s iconic culture,” said Cody.
They finally settled on the one that felt right: Seattle Mutiny.
“There were a few favorites for us: Fog, Seismic, Emeralds,” Janelle said. “But Mutiny was our favorite. It’s fierce, exciting and a great seaworthy complement to ‘Kraken.’ Plus, fans could then call themselves the Mutineers, which really sealed the deal for us.”
The new identity uses the team’s existing cream and emerald green colors but progresses the brand with a new logo centered on the Space Needle and a vibrant orange accent.
“It’s a big moment for Seattle and for women’s sports,” said Chief Creative Officer Curt Schreiber. “Whatever the team decides, I’m really proud we raised our hands and put something out there.”
This project is part of an ongoing program by VSA Partners calls “Design for Better”—an ambitious journey to redesign logos, websites, apps, packaging and more. Part creative sketchpad and part contribution to businesses, brands and society, these uncommissioned solutions are generated simply for the love of the game. You can see the collection to date at design4better.co.
We’re so excited to share that FactSet’s “Not Just the Facts” campaign has earned three major wins at the 2025 ANA B2 Awards, which celebrate the very best in business-to-business marketing.
Developed with our amazing client FactSet, the campaign challenged the conventions of boring B2B financial marketing by spotlighting a common frustration: financial professionals need data, but facts without context are useless. With a smart, tongue-in-cheek approach, “Not Just the Facts” positioned FactSet as the antidote—offering insights that are as meaningful as they are actionable.
These awards reflect the power of blending creative bravery with strategic clarity, and what’s possible when a brand is willing to break away from the usual B2B playbook. Congratulations to everyone involved in bringing this vision to life, and thank you to ANA and the jury for this honor.
VSA Partners designed a campaign to welcome the off-Broadway production “Blank! The Musical” to Chicago. The musical improv show premieres this month at The Revival on June 29.
At “Blank!”, every night is opening night and closing night of a brand-new musical made up on the spot. “Blank!” is completely improvised, created via audience suggestions. Unlike most live theater performances, “Blank!” encourages audience members to break out their smartphones at the start of the performance, submitting and voting on titles, lyrics, chord progressions and more before enjoying the ensuing live performance created from the winning suggestions.
VSA Partners, which has a strong history of working with Chicago institutions and cultural programs, created a new campaign to celebrate the show’s premiere. The campaign includes out-of-home advertising and branding integrated into the show design itself. The new campaign builds on a previous campaign concept created by Kieran Antill, with photography by Richard Ballard.
“When we designed the logo and expression, we embraced the idea of ‘unscripted creative’ and allowing new ideas to build off previous ones,” said VSA Chief Creative Officer Curt Schreiber. “The elongated ‘L’ allows for the image to interact, and color was deliberately not used in order to convey the idea of a blank canvas. The stark black-and-white compositions are noticeably different from typical entertainment marketing because the show is different.”
“VSA has been an incredible partner,” said The Revival Founder John Stoops. “They’ve worked with so many other amazing Chicago institutions. We were honored that they helped us create buzz around this fantastic show and bring to it the attention it deserves.”
“I’m thrilled VSA and ‘Blank!’ could partner in this way,” said VSA Head of Strategy Michael Girts, who is also one of the show’s creators. “VSAers and the actors in ‘Blank!’ share a lot of the same traits: courage, creativity, versatility and an unwavering belief that a great idea can happen in an instant.”
Show previews begin June 29, 2024.
The Revival is a thriving, multipurpose performing arts company that offers live performances, classes and workshops. Founded in 2015, the theater is proud to bring improvisation back to Chicago’s historic South Side.
“Blank! The Musical” is off-Broadway’s first-ever completely unscripted piece of musical theater, created by Michael Girts, T.J. Shanoff and Mike Descoteaux. The New York Times called “Blank!” “witty and likable in refreshingly unaggressive ways” and went on to say “the performers of ‘Blank!’ seem to have genetically coded knowledge of the forms, formulas and cliches that make up the bulk of contemporary musicals.”
VSA’s VP of Technology Thaddeus Ternes was recently published in Ad Age. His piece reckons with the challenges and opportunities AI poses to creatives, and how we can best harness this power while protecting the aspects that make agencies great.
As agencies begin to market AI, there’s an edge of panic to their offerings. “We use AI!” is plastered across websites without any real substance as to how or why. It reads less as FOMO and more as fear of being trampled.
I’m skeptical of AI’s ability to deliver on the hype—but we’ll regret letting panic drive the choices we make.
AI has real benefits. I’m incredibly optimistic about the possibilities for human advancement, equality of health and lived experiences and how we might explore our world and our existence in new ways.
But I’m also terrified about the misuse of emerging technologies when it comes to upholding values such as democracy, justice and civilization—the essentials of a modern society.
Advertisers, marketers and creatives need to admit that using artificial intelligence embodies this same paradox. We need to navigate these challenges pragmatically, with eyes wide open. From ethical considerations to legal repercussions, these are the four questions we as an industry should be asking ourselves when we think about using AI in our business practices:
Right now, it feels like we’re all running to catch the AI train without asking where it’s going. Let’s slow down and figure out what we really want to accomplish with AI.
So much of what I hear when people tout the abilities of AI is “faster, cheaper, more.” Is that really what we are chasing as agencies? Is that what you want clients to think of you?
I don’t think so. Most of us got into this industry because of our love of the craft and the experience of working with others to create something bigger than ourselves. Beloved brands are rarely associated with doing things faster and cheaper. They’re based on qualities such as reliability, wonderful customer service and a great product. If you’re going to adopt AI, my recommendation is to think about how it bolsters the things that already make agencies great. Maybe it takes mundane tasks off creatives’ plates so they can spend more time doing deep, slow thinking. Maybe it helps writers or designers or animators flex into new skill sets more quickly, diversifying perspectives and breaking down silos.
There’s no one-size-fits-all solution here, and some of it will take exploration. But if we can step back and figure out what the end game is, and how we ultimately want to present ourselves, we can make more intentional choices that support the long-term health of our business and our industry.
The progression of technology in the last decade—particularly in data science, machine learning and generative models—is astounding. Advances in parallel computing, mass data storage and new learning algorithms have unlocked seemingly magical capabilities. The results of these advancements are truly remarkable.
Much of it is also undeniably stolen.
That’s toxic. What rights to fair use do automated technologies have? Who gave them these rights? (The answer: No one.)
At the heart of our industry is the belief that creators deserve credit and control over their work. This principle should guide our choice of AI platforms. We should invest in technologies that align with our values and ethical standards rather than those that undermine the roles of human creators. Moreover, platforms should be required to recognize, credit and compensate artists for their work. It’s only fair that creators be rewarded for what they create. In an era when personal brand is increasingly important—but also in which AI threatens to sap us of our ingenuity—human creativity needs to be uniquely recognized and rewarded.
The platforms we use should recognize the value of creative work, crediting and compensating artists fairly. Period.
At the heart of our industry is the belief that creators deserve credit and control over their work. This principle should guide our choice of AI platforms. We should invest in technologies that align with our values and ethical standards rather than those that undermine the roles of human creators.”
Given the uncertain legal landscape surrounding AI-generated content, we’re going to need tools that serve as guardrails.
For example, I can see the benefit of a tool that works as an “AI vault,” meaning a detailed audit trail of all AI-created content, the parameters and processes used to generate it and how humans were involved. A record like that would serve as a crucial accountability tool, providing evidence of how content was created. In the event of legal disputes or copyright issues, this archive can offer a clear trail of AI usage, helping to resolve conflicts and demonstrate compliance with ethical standards.
Another thing to consider is transparency with clients. If we’re really going to embrace using AI, it shouldn’t be a secret we’re trying to hide. Clients should know when we’re using it and give explicit signoff on AI use in their projects.
One way to do that is to include AI usage in scope-of-work documents. This practice helps protect agencies against liabilities and ensures that clients are fully informed and comfortable with the technologies being used. It also builds trust, as clients are reassured there are no hidden elements in the creation process.
Creative agencies should not wait for tech companies to self-regulate. Instead, we have a responsibility to advocate for regulations that protect artists and creatives. Business leaders in the creative industry wield substantial influence and can use their platforms to push for legislation and policies that ensure fair and ethical AI usage in their fields. This involves engaging with elected officials, participating in public discourse and collaborating with industry peers to promote standards that prioritize the rights and contributions of human creators.
I’m not trying to be a Luddite. Integrating AI into the creative industry could yield some seriously exciting possibilities. But there’s always the danger of letting the shiny new toy become our value proposition.
The next 18 to 36 months might bring major headwinds for agencies, as companies decide they can use AI to replace the work agencies have provided. But we’ve seen this movie before, i.e., when the move to in-house creative shook our industry. That worked for a while, but ultimately, companies realized the benefits of bringing in outside, flexible support, and they came back.
It’s fine to tout your usage of AI. Being on the cutting edge of technology is always appealing to clients and prospective employees. But let’s not lose sight of the real thing that makes clients come back to agencies time and time again: the people.
We are very proud to announce that two of VSA’s recent collaborations with our client Sappi received award recognition.
Most recently, our 2023 holiday kit boxes received a PRINT Award for UX design in the self-promotion category, as according to PRINT it “tapped into user experience, highlighting the importance of haptics and form to create memorable brand engagements.” The holiday kit boxes are created to be both useful and beautiful, and to foster a sense of connection during the holiday season.
Our Power of Trees video and campaign also received a gold in the Hermes Creative Awards, which honors the messengers and creators of the information revolution. The Power of Trees video showcases woodfiber’s potential as a renewable material, and Sappi’s commitment to responsible forestry management.
BNY Mellon announced this week that it is updating its logo and simplifying its company umbrella brand to “BNY.” This collaboration with VSA complements BNY's evolution, and brings the logo and brand into its next era.
“This is a 240-year-old company that has never stopped asking ‘what’s next,’ and this new logo is really grounded in their strategy and who they are,” said VSA Associate Partner and Executive Creative Director YanYan Zhang. “It’s been a great partnership and a really significant moment to be a part of.”
The refreshed brand gives new life to the storied institution by recognizing its bold ambitions. Designed to speak to both its rich heritage as the country’s oldest bank and its relentless spirit of innovation, the new brand was built with flexibility as a core capability. The broader brand system allows its users to scale from formal to expressive and deliver best-in-class creativity to a wide range of audiences.
The new BNY logo embodies these key brand attributes of simplicity, flexibility and boldness.
“With this shift, the visual length of the logo reduces by two-thirds. The bold custom sans-serif letterforms are essential in establishing presence and substance. The arrow was retained and modified to convey forward thinking and modernity,” said VSA Chief Creative Officer Curt Schreiber.
While the logo is new, the refreshed brand has already received recognition, including a Gold award in the “Visual Identity System: Corporate Image” category at the FCS Portfolio Awards earlier this spring.
Our client Chime recently announced its new “MyPay” offering by taking out a center-spread ad in the New York Times.
Part celebration of Chime’s members, part rallying cry, the letter is written directly to all the Americans who’ve ever had an unexpected expense and found themselves in need of a little financial flexibility.
Chime’s latest offering, “MyPay,” gives its members access to a portion of their paycheck at any time during the pay period, helping them navigate the surprise costs that can pop up between paydays.
Very proud to be part of this announcement—congrats to Chime and the team.
Very proud to share that VSA received two awards at this year’s Financial Communications Society (FCS) Portfolio Awards, taking home a Gold and a Bronze alongside our client partners BNY Mellon and CME Group.
Our collaboration with BNY Mellon on its revitalized brand identity was recognized with a Gold award in the “Visual Identity System: Corporate Image” category. BNY Mellon’s refreshed brand expression gives new life to the storied institution by recognizing its startup-like ambitions. Designed to speak to both its rich heritage as the country’s oldest bank and its relentless spirit of innovation, the new brand was built with flexibility as a core capability. From colors to typography, the refreshed brand allows its users to scale from formal to expressive and deliver best-in-class creativity to a wide range of audiences.
Our partnership on the MarketTech Forum events with longtime client CME Group was also recognized with a Bronze award in the “Event Marketing: Corporate Image” category. MarketTech Forum is an ongoing series tailored to CME Group’s power users where they can hear directly from CME Group personnel about key developments and technological advancements to get the most out of their experience. From stage branding to wayfinding, landing pages to event mementos, VSA partnered with CME Group to create a full event-experience design that would support and scale as needed.
