I’m a fan of the personal brand, even though mine is not well-developed or even consciously pursued. I don’t care to be a Nike or a Starbucks; ubiquity is less interesting than personality, not to mention ethical responsibility. But I wouldn’t mind making a few bucks off my own little branded empire. Since 2003, more or less, I’ve been running Fringeblog, which is the site you’re currently on and if you have kept up with my exploits, you know that I’ve branched out into a number of areas, including but not limited to podcasting, merchandising, designing, and from the artistic side of things, building a creative portfolio.

I’ve kept the name, throughout the process, as a hinge upon which the rest of my little empire can grow. The hinge is the name FRINGE, which is my hook into whatever world I’m interested at the time. I’ve attempted to maintain control of that by sub-branding each of my enterprises. Fringeblog, Fringecast, Fringebook (my new Facebook name), and now, FringeBuy, which is the merchandising/selling arm of the growing body. I’m like an alien fetus growing and growing. The idea is the brand will one day explode out of my chest and into the consciousness of a paying public.

Designing around Fringe is not that difficult. It’s not necessarily an abstract word on its own, but neither does it denote any particular ideology or reason. Like Nike, it is just its own semiotic designate identified (I hope) with me and my empire. That said, I don’t feel particular compunction to design with a specific thematic consistency or approach, especially as I am still exploring what it is to have a brand. As I build cohesion (though I may not do so) that may change, but for the moment, all I can say is I have a very loose development strategy and keep things as casual and fluid as possible.