From concept to client: An exploration of brand innovation and strategy

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Kushal Karwa has carved out a distinctive career at the intersection of business and art, demonstrating how artistic insight and practical business acumen can drive brand innovation. His Master’s in Arts from a highly respected school of design and Bachelor’s in Product Design are complemented by a diploma in Electronics and Telecommunication. This diversified foundation supports his expertise in design thinking, project management, concept planning, product development, relationship management, and problem-solving. He applies analytical training and critical thinking to foster growth.

The brand innovation business itself is beset with deeply rooted issues, most significantly siloed teams in which marketers and designers work in solitude. Siloed thinking too frequently leads to misaligned products that fail to resonate with consumers. The speeding pace of technological disruption and economic change further entangles these problems, making it challenging for brands to respond without aligned, concerted strategies. Existing solutions, such as generic consulting offering template-style strategies or internal overhauls that merely address symptoms, fail. They sidestep the fundamental need for cross-disciplinary insight, generating incremental gains rather than radical force necessary for long-term growth, leaving business exposed to stagnation.

Kushal’s professional journey illustrates the sustained capacity to fill such industry gaps. His professional journey started as an intern, where space, lighting, and marketing were combined in a game center. In that position, he used design to improve the overall player experience and brand identity as well as designing materials and strategies that effectively attracted customers and promoted events. This first experience in user-centric solutions planted the seed of the potential of combining design and marketing to drive engagement from the beginning.

He then stepped up to Business and Product Development Manager, working on projects involving digital LED displays and 3D printing. As 3D printing Design Head, he developed and designed sales strategies and won an award for successfully launching the technology at a major IT expo. In event and LED display promotion, he managed sales and marketing to maximize client engagement and coverage. His work filled gaps in the market through customization of products to specific requirements, with significant business coverage growth. His direct participation in 3D printing conferences also improved his ability to spot trends, which he was able to effectively apply into real strategies that led to company growth.

After that, as an Internet and Telecom Product Development and Marketing Consultant, he worked exclusively on internet and telecom products, conducting one-on-one customer consultations to develop customized solutions and promotion plans. This tailored approach countered consumer misalignment, creating greater customer satisfaction and conversion rates—performance metrics that testified to the power of an empathetic, customer-centric strategy in driving retail sales.

Before becoming a career counselor, Kushal served as a Creative Account Lead for an in-house design and innovation studio. His job was to develop, conceptualize, and lead brand innovation projects for leading brands, collaborating with leading companies from the Fortune 100 to the Fortune 500 in Europe and the United States. Collaborating with over 40 of the world’s top design and creative industry leaders, he solves challenging creative and business problems, bridges student and alumni businesses, and delivers executive education in a global creative thinking hub.

His leadership is demonstrated through many high-impact projects across various sectors. In the automotive sector, he led multidisciplinary teams to evaluate a major automobile company’s product portfolio, using design thinking in imagining formats and strategies to address market needs, resulting in more effective product launches and improved client relationships. In the aerospace sector, he led the implementation of new ideas into operations, opening new business opportunities that drove economic growth through innovative models. Further, in competitive markets, he played a crucial role in developing compelling brand identities through delivering high-energy client presentations and imagining workshops, which enhanced rapport and significantly increased the levels of engagement, in accordance with the conversion rate improvements in his prior career.

From his broad experience in business development, marketing, and design, his early and mid-career work has led to a rich body of experience that he now applies as a career advisor. He is passionate about empowering individuals to navigate their professional journeys, offering practical guidance on everything from resume and portfolio reviews to crafting compelling cover letters. Rather than simply providing advice, Kushal actively enables professional growth and assists individuals in developing solid industry connections, readying them to respond to changing industry demands and connect with his advising network. 

His activities involve mentorship, where he shares best practices with colleagues, provides one-on-one mentoring, and actively engages in internal committees focused on strategic planning and programming.

Kushal’s methods differ in that they emphasize adaptive, team-oriented models over static ones. Through strategic relationship management, he builds long-term connections that consolidate multiple perspectives, essentially bridging across traditional industry silos. Data-driven processes inform each step, allowing for methods that are not only novel but quantifiable, with tangible results in the form of faster growth and reduced innovation risk.

The profound effects of his approach are evident on multiple fronts: brands gain vitality from shared visions, and new businesses emerge, driving industry growth. On a broader scale, his contributions help stabilize industries, minimizing failed attempts and encouraging innovators for future developments. Clients consistently experience tangible results, including broadened market reach and content stakeholders, mirroring his previous successes in sales expansion.

In the future, Kushal plans to take executive education to emerging economies, which will help more organizations globally with design marketing capacity to deal with an increasingly complicated world.

His own philosophy is encapsulated in his own words: “Brand creation and product promotion that helps businesses grow and expand their businesses is at the heart of what drives me.” He continues, “Innovation thrives when we connect ideas and customers, thus turning challenges into opportunities,” encapsulating a philosophy that places human aspects at the heart of all strategy.

Kushal’s journey provides a compelling blueprint for the sector: by advancing from foundational schemes to leading studio initiatives, it demonstrates how concerted, consistent effort can transform brand landscapes, fostering agility and success in an increasingly dynamic world.