Friday Five with Josh Morenstein and Nick Cronan of Branch

Before banding together to launch their own studio, Josh Morenstein and Nick Cronan met when they both worked at Yves Behar’s fuseproject. Since then, the award-winning industrial designers founded Branch, a San Francisco-based design and branding firm. While the agency has been around since 2013, they landed on our radar back in 2016 when they launched their Drift collection for Council at ICFF. When they’re not creating thoughtfully designed products, the pair can be found consulting a myriad of clients, from start-ups to Fortune 500 companies, including Google, Plume, L’Oréal, The North Face, Samsung, and Coca-Cola, to name a few. Here, the duo shares a design-focused mix of picks, including some classic kicks, a rocket, and a jaw-dropping piece of architecture, for their Friday Five.

1. Cutler and Gross
We have a thing for super high quality materials and components mixed with classic timeless styling. They feel incredible in your hands and even better on your face. A perfect mix of both classic and progressive lines.

2. Vans (authentic)
Classic California comfort. The perfect minimal sneaker for a warm active day. They look better the more you break them in, then it’s time for a fresh pair.

3. Jump Bikes
We are excited to see bike share programs popping up in cities all over the US, Jump is taking the idea a step further with power assist. Their technology takes away the pain and hassle of riding further distances or up hills, something that makes a great deal of sense in San Francisco. Painted in a bold shade of fluorescent pink, these bikes are easy to find on street corners and on the road.

Photo by Iwan Baan

4. Thomas Heatherwick’s Building for Zeitz MOCAA
A huge concept executed flawlessly. They took a 3D scan of a single grain of corn, scaled it up to the height of 10 stories and used it as a cutting tool to create a truly unique space in the center of the building with modern, cathedral-like results.

Photo courtesy of SpaceX

5. Space X’s Falcon Heavy Rocket
The most impressive and progressive step for the future of mankind. When people with different points of view all focus on the same positive idea or pursuit, the future becomes brighter. The future is now…we are watching the democratization of space.

from Design MilkDesign Milk https://design-milk.com/friday-five-with-josh-morenstein-and-nick-cronan-of-branch/