Baking with Johnny Cupcakes
Recipe for Success Step 1 Johnny Cupcakes started with Johnny Earl, a college drop out with self diagnosed ADD working at Newburry Records, a record store in Massachusetts. It all began as a joke, when he ordered custom shirts that had Johnny Cupcakes written across then front. When he noticed that people where interested in his shirts he came up with other designs that integrated cupcakes into iconic pieces of work. An example would be the statue of liberty holding a cupcake instead of a torch. Johnny had the bright idea of adding a cupcake to crossbones instead of the skull and a famous logo was born. Recipe for Success
Recipe for Success Johnny was leading a drug and alcohol free lifestyle when he began touring with his band Broken Wings and sold his shirts from a suitcase in the back of their van. He quit the band to focus on his clothing line. He decided that it was time to take his company to new heights and attended a Las Vegas trade show. Everyone working at the booth wore Chef outfits and handed out cupcakes with pamphlets of the shirt designs. His line was bought by stores in Japan, Canada and the US. It wasn t until afterwards that he decided that he didn t want his brand to be sold everywhere, he turned down offers from stores like Hot Topic and Nordstrom. He decided that he wanted his brand to be exclusive. The shirts are limited edition and once the item sold out it isn t reprinted. In 2005 the first Johnny Cupcakes store was opened in Hull, Massachusetts. At first the idea was to use it for storage but it was transformed into a vintage bakery for shirts. The second store is located in Boston s Rodeo Drive and the third one is on Melrose in Southern California. He has maintained a close relationship with his customers and likes holding events to meet them. Step 2
Recipe for Success Step 3 Left: Some of the first Johnny Cupcakes designs were sold from an old suitcase in the back of a van. Lower: The first Look Book was created for a Las Vegas Trade show
Recipe for Success Johnny was voted America s #1 Young Entrepreneur of 2008 by BusinessWeek. He lectures at universities encouraging students to live a drug free lifestyle and to pursue their dreams and become determined individuals with goals in mind. Recently he started touring around the US meeting fans of his clothing line and selling shirts from a suitcase the way he did when he had just started out. Step 4
The Good Stuff Step 5 The design uses curvilinear lines within the top of the cupcake which makes the top look a little bit softer against the sharp angular lines of the crossbones and the bottom piece of the cupcake. I believe that the logo design is very successful, the logo can be applied to almost anything. The online store has earrings, pens, ties and even umbrellas. There are also different variations of the famous logo, for example for baseball fans, the crossbones have been replaced with baseball bats and the cupcake has a baseball design on it. The fact that the logo can be altered in different ways but still be recognized makes it a very successful design. There are also The Good Stuff special edition designs where the logo is completely different but still has the same recognizable cupcake
The Good Stuff Step 6 Johnny Cupcakes products:
The Good Stuff Step 7 What I love about the company is how true they have stayed to themselves. They don t mass produce anything in China which makes having an Original Johnny Cupcakes shirt very exclusive. A lot of people that have bought his shirts know that the brand has a very unique style and they have grown to respect what the company stands for. He only uses selected Illustrators to do all of his designing so that all of his shirt designs look like that they have the same look. He admits that he doesn t have very good illustrator skills but is only a doodler. You can tell that he has a lot of passion for his company because of all the details that he puts into everything. Even his shipping boxes have their own personality. Each of his stores
The Good Stuff Step 8 look like a vintage bakery, they have custom made furniture and decorations. My visit to the Los Angeles store was very exciting. The clothing is inside giant fridges where you could order them from the counter. The size chart is displayed as a giant nutrition facts sign which adds to the cleverness of the store.
Social Impact Step 9 The Johnny cupcakes logo may not be as famous as Roxy or Volcom, but it sure is making a name for itself. Many people do know about the company and they have become loyal cupcake fanatics. People have gotten tattoos of the logo and attend every meet and greet with Johnny that they can. His brand required a lot of hard work that any graphic designer could appreciate. I respect the way that he has treated his brand, especially how he has managed to keep it exclusive. Social Impact
Social impact Step 10 People line up at stores for hours just to meet the mastermind behind the cupcake phenomenon. For the Melrose store opening, there were people lining up around the curb to buy some shirts. Johnny decided to make the day special by saying hello to every single customer that was in line. He also passes out cupcakes on days where there are special events at his store I think that s what makes his brand extra special and people notice that. Not many famous designers will take the time to meet every customer. He also hold special events where his customers could wear a shirt and get free ice cream sandwiches where they could meet him, ask wuestions, and even get merchandise signed. I attended one of these events and I loved how enthusiastic all of his fans were. They stood In line in the cold for about an hour to get to meet him and it truly was inspiring. It gives me and idea as to what a clothing brand should be. The brand has become welll known not only because of it s cool and funky designs, but also because of the values that Johnny holds.
Social Impact Step 11
Examples Step 12 Examples
Ingredients Step Baptist, Darius. Johnny Cupcakes. Weblog post. YRB MAGAZINE. 16 Feb. 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. Cupcakes, Johny. Johnny CupCakes / Story. Johnny Cupcakes / Shop. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. <http://shop.johnnycupcakes.com/story/>. Johnny Cupcakes Interview. How to Start a Clothing Line - Tshirt Business, Clothing Company, T-shirt Blog, Shirt Design. 7 Mar. 2008. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. N., Jesse. JOHNNY CUPCAKES INTERVIEW. Out of Print Magazine. 11 May 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2010. Slobotski, Jeff. Johnny Cupcakes Founder Shares His Story, Talks about Upcoming Visit. Silicon Prairie News [Omaha] 11 Feb. 2010. Print. Ingredients
Katherine Calderon History of Design Friday 12 pm