Selected Work

    Brand, product and creative development across beauty and lifestyle.

    My work has ranged from building brands and developing products from the ground up to translating established ideas into new products, experiences and creative systems.

    The projects below reflect different starting points, but the role is often similar: clarify the idea, make the right development decisions and connect the people, products and brand thinking required to bring it into reality.

    Brand & Product Development

    Brand Strategy + Product Development

    Martinsson King

    From original idea to international beauty brand

    Created from the ground up in New York, Martinsson King began with an original personalised haircare concept and developed into an international beauty brand.

    As founder and creative lead, David shaped the brand proposition, product architecture and product development programme, working across formulation, laboratory and supplier relationships, packaging, creative direction, education and international market development.

    Martinsson King haircare product range
    An original haircare portfolio developed from concept through formulation, packaging, production and international market launch.
    Martinsson King Dutch Beauty Award winner range, Clean Mousse Swedish Beauty Awards nominee, and Root Lift Danish Beauty Award winner

    Selected Recognition

    Dutch Beauty Award 2021

    Winner · Exclusive Hair Care

    Martinsson King Modular Hair Care series

    Danish Beauty Award 2021

    Winner

    Root Lift Dry Volume Spray

    Pure Beauty Global Awards 2021

    Finalist

    Style Memory

    Swedish Beauty Awards 2021

    Nominee

    Clean Mousse

    Product Development

    SPØL

    From product idea to warehouse

    A salon owner’s ambition for a distinctive professional styling product was translated into a structured development brief and led through formulation, sampling, packaging, compliance coordination and production.

    David acted as the client-side development lead, managing communication between the client, laboratory and production partners through to delivery of 5,000 finished units in the Netherlands.

    SPØL Matt Clay professional styling product and campaign imagery

    Creative Product Development

    OmarOwen / Cubikoo

    Translating place and narrative into fragrance

    For designer Edward van Vliet, conceptual narratives for the OmarOwen / Cubikoo pavilion experience were translated into olfactive development briefs.

    David identified and engaged a specialist fragrance laboratory, directed the development process and participated in laboratory evaluation through to completed fragrance samples.

    Four OmarOwen fragrance concepts developed for the Cubikoo pavilion experience

    Different projects. Different roles.

    Not every project requires the same level of involvement.

    Sometimes the work begins with an undefined idea. Sometimes the product exists but the brand needs greater clarity. Sometimes the challenge is translating a creative concept into something specialist partners can develop.

    The common thread is experienced judgement across the decisions connecting brand, product and execution.

    Discuss a Project

    Whether the challenge is strategic, product-led or still taking shape, start by telling me what you are working on and where the project currently stands.

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