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Lauren Wong is co-founder and creative director at Super Keen, a New York–based independent creative studio blending strategy and design. Founded in 2021 by Lauren and fellow co-founder Gabby Lord, Super Keen has launched a diverse array of creative projects from the foundations up, including visual identities, websites, digital products and books.
Embodying the modern creative leadership role, Lauren balances the running of the studio with hands-on design and team mentorship. As part of our 5 Questions series, I caught up with Lauren to discuss the industry wins, creative pet peeves and the mystery of her disappearing synesthesia.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever ignored?
My co-founder, Gabby Lord, says this all the time: you can’t steer a parked car. It basically means that you can’t be paralysed by perfection or theoreticals – you just have to do the damn thing. This is one of our studio’s core beliefs, and yet I still get stuck in a parked car sometimes.
When we wanted to create reel-style videos for our case studies, I dragged my feet because I didn’t have a microphone. Or I didn’t have the backdrop in my apartment. Or I wanted to wait for my haircut because I didn’t want to look like shit in the video. But everything got easier when I just got started. And people seem to love the case study videos, even though they’re not perfect. Some people have told us that they want to do something like this. So do them!
What’s a brand that you think is killing it right now? And what’s the secret to their success?
I’m pretty obsessed with Big Ellie, the elephant mascot from the New York Liberty WNBA team. Ellie is this big elephant with incredible dance moves, real swagger, and a huge fan base. I live near Barclays Center where the Liberty play, and I’ve seen Ellie swag, Ellie artwork, even a birthday party thrown for Ellie, with a custom Ellie cake.
As a brand strategist, Big Ellie embodies a lot of the things I talk about with clients. She has a story to tell. She has strong opinions. But she doesn’t try to be a different mascot to different people. I know consistency can sound boring, but that’s what makes Big Ellie so successful: she’s the same glam elephant everywhere she goes. And that’s why people can’t get enough of her.
How do you make people care about a brand?
,I don’t know if you can make people care, but you can open the door. People care about brands that mean something to them, that reflect some side of them they’re proud of, or say something they believe in. Businesses make profit, but brands make meaning. And if you want to make meaning, you need to tell a story that people are excited to hear.
What’s your creative pet peeve?
Presentations that aren’t built on a grid.
What would be the name of your autobiography?
Something about losing my synesthesia. I’ve had a rare type of synesthesia my whole life, but it disappeared after I had a baby. If work ever slows down, I’d love to write about it…
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