R.J. ABBOTT — Co-Founder
Most brands don’t have a creativity problem. They have a belief problem. They are built to generate awareness in a world that now rewards devotion. Early-stage brands struggle to create conviction in the first place. Once-iconic brands lose it over time, often by optimizing themselves into the perceived safety of sameness. Different stages. Same problem. After spending my career leading creative direction across fashion, retail, experiential design, and brand worlds, inside both global companies and challenger brands, I came to a simple conclusion: Branding as we know it no longer works. Logos, campaigns, content calendars, and “storytelling” do not create relevance. They create short-term attention and long-term noise. What creates relevance is belief: • A clear point of view • A defined identity • Rituals people want to participate in • A narrative that gives meaning to belonging In other words: Conviction. I help founders create conviction from nothing, and help legacy brands restore the conviction that once made them great. Not by modernizing them. Not by refreshing their look. And certainly not by chasing trends. But by identifying where belief was diluted, where clarity was traded for scale, and where the original world they built was abandoned. This work lives at the intersection of: • Creative direction • Narrative architecture • Cultural strategy • World-building across physical, digital, and experiential systems I do not operate as an agency. Nor do I sell assets, campaigns, or aesthetics. I work with companies at inflection points, when relevance is slipping, growth has stalled, or the category itself has become indistinguishable. Alongside my advisory work under Neighborhood Cult, I am also beginning to apply this thinking publicly through a regulated spirits brand Ajornada, treating it as a live case study in belief-first brand building. The work is not finished. In many ways, it’s just beginning. For those interested in the process, decisions, experiments, trade-offs, and signals, it will be shared here, and in real time. If you are looking for better branding, I’m not the right person. If you are looking to create or restore conviction, and want to see what that looks like when the work is still unfolding, then we should talk.
Stackforce AI infers this person is a B2C brand strategist with expertise in experiential marketing and narrative-driven brand development.
Location: Los Angeles, California, United States
Experience: 18 yrs 1 mo
Skills
- Brand Strategy
- Creative Direction
- Brand Positioning
- Experiential Strategy
- Retail Design
- Brand Activation
- Global Brand Management
- Consumer Experience
- Brand Transformation
- Product Launch Strategy
- Experiential Marketing
- Brand Development
- Retail Management
- Brand Storytelling
Career Highlights
- Expert in belief-driven brand building.
- Led high-impact experiential initiatives for global brands.
- Founder with a focus on narrative strategy and community building.
Work Experience
Neighborhood Cult
FOUNDER + NARRATIVE STRATEGIST (1 yr 2 mos)
AJORNADA
FOUNDER (6 yrs 6 mos)
smohk + [mir-ers]
FOUNDER & CREATIVE DIRECTOR (2 yrs 9 mos)
The North Face
CREATIVE DIRECTOR, CONSUMER EXPERIENCE (CX) (1 yr 2 mos)
Oakley
CREATIVE DIRECTOR, CONSUMER EXPERIENCE (CX) (3 yrs)
Tommy Hilfiger
HEAD OF SPECIAL PROJECTS (1 yr)
Ralph Lauren
CREATIVE SERVICES MANAGER | RETAIL LEADERSHIP (RUGBY) (4 yrs)
