5 Minutes with Sarah Walter
Members of Design Assembly make up a network of Friends working together to build a thriving design scene in Aotearoa New Zealand. Our ‘Five Minutes’ series profiles the breadth and depth of design practice in our network.
Sarah Walter is a copywriter by trade, who started her career at JWT and DDB working on several blue-chip clients and picking up a few awards along the way. After freelancing for a few years, Sarah founded The Namery – filling a gap in the market for a specialist, writer-led naming and copywriting agency. These days, her sweet spot is bring brands to life through words – whether it’s one word (names), a few words (taglines), or thousands of words (brand stories, website copy, ads and more).
Sarah, tell us about The Namery:
The Namery’s tagline is ‘where brands begin’. And that in a nutshell, is what I love doing best. As well as name development, I specialise in taglines, brand stories and creating a brand’s unique tone of voice. Once that’s nailed, I can help with website copy, advertising concepts & copy, packaging copy (love it!), digital and social; you name it. More recently, I’ve added strategy to the mix, plus I work closely with several top designers and agencies, so I can provide a ‘brief to brand’ solution for clients.
What does your design process and philosophy look like?
I believe a great name is a brand’s sales pitch, ethos and reason for being, all rolled into one. Which is why it’s crucial to get it right. To that end, I’ve developed a four-step process to ensure a name meets the brief: Discovery, Namery, Refinery and Delivery. The Discovery (strategy) part is key – naming projects where we’ve done the groundwork and have a clear, compelling strategy always have better outcomes.
What’s one thing that you would like all of your clients to know?
Naming isn’t easy. Finding a name that ticks all the right boxes, stands out and is also available takes time, tenacity and creativity. Naming is also incredibly subjective, especially when there are several stakeholders involved. For that reason, I usually allow for at least two rounds of naming, because sometimes the first round tells me what a client does or doesn’t like! A brilliant name can be worth thousands or even millions of dollars to a business, so it pays to invest in the time and process it takes to get it right.
What are your favourite tools in the studio?
Me, my brain and my trusty MacBook. I don’t use AI for naming at the moment – so far, it’s dredged up nothing but very lame names. While it’s handy for research and other menial tasks, it simply can’t (and hopefully won’t) replace years of experience and creativity.
What are your favourite types of projects to work on?
I love what I do and I’m so lucky to do it every day. I particularly enjoy creating a new brand from scratch, but equally I’ve been involved in some fantastic rebranding projects too.
Over the years, I’ve worked with several not-for-profit organisations too, which is great way to combine my skills and values.
What project are you most proud of?
There are too many to mention! Highlights include helping to refresh the HealthPost brand – a company that truly lives and breathes its values, working closely with Oritain Global to refresh their external and internal comms, and rebranding Comvita’s eponymous olive leaf extract to Olive Life Daily; to name just a few examples.
More recently, create a unique voice and compelling website copy for klen.co, and the name, tagline and copy for painting accessories brand, Paintr.
Any advice about our industry for emerging designers or career changers?
Trust your instinct. If it’s telling you your work’s not good enough yet, it’s probably right.
Where do you draw inspiration from?
Life. Books, magazines, movies, fresh air. It’s important to allow ‘mulling time’ on any creative project – if you give it enough time and space, the answer will always come.
Where can people connect with you?
Check out thenamery.co.nz or email sarah@thenamery.co.nz.
Members of Design Assembly make up a network of Friends working together to build a thriving design scene in Aotearoa New Zealand. Our ‘Five Minutes’ series profiles the breadth and depth of design practice in our network.
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