Services / Brand architecture
Brand architecture that puts your portfolio in order
Which brands lead. Which follow. Which stand alone. We set the rules once, so every launch gets easier.
Brand architecture is how the brands in your business relate to one another. Which ones lead. Which ones follow. Which ones stand alone.
Tata is a masterbrand. Tata Salt, Tata Tea and Tata Sampann all borrow trust from the parent name. That is a branded house. Hindustan Unilever works the other way. Surf, Dove, Lux and Lifebuoy each stand on their own. That is a house of brands. Most portfolios sit between the two, as a hybrid. All three models are valid. The mistake is having no model.
Without one, your own products compete for attention. Your sales team cannot explain the range. Your customer gets lost. And every new launch starts a fresh argument about names and logos.
- Three modelsBranded house, house of brands, or hybrid.
- Rules for launchesWritten before the next product arrives.
- Our own modelThe Brand Meridian Model, applied to every portfolio.
Three models. Five ratios.
Branded house and house of brands sit at either end. The hybrid fills the space between. We read each brand as a ratio: master brand first, sub-brand second.
- 95:05Branded houseThe parent name does the work. The sub-brand only describes.Tata Salt, Amul Butter
- 70:30HybridThe parent leads. The sub-brand brings its own character.Google Pixel
- 50:50HybridTwo names, equal weight. Each lends the other something.Samsung Galaxy
- 30:70HybridThe sub-brand leads. The parent vouches for it.Apple iPhone
- 05:95House of brandsEvery brand stands alone. The parent stays in the background.Surf, Dove, Lux
One portfolio can hold several ratios. Choosing each one, and writing it down, is the work.
What you get
- A portfolio mapEvery brand and product, placed.
- Joining rulesHow a new brand or product enters the family.
- Parent to sub-brandThe ratio between masterbrand and every sub-brand beneath it.
- Naming and endorsement rulesSo new names follow a pattern.
- Guidelines that holdThey keep working as you grow.
Our method
The Brand Meridian Model
Every portfolio is a system, whether or not anyone designed it. The Brand Meridian Model is how we read yours. It maps where each brand sits, how they relate to one another, and where each one finds its own orbit. Elegant order, so your portfolio works as a system rather than a pile. You see the full model once we begin.
- Where each brand sitsIts place, and its ratio of parent to sub-brand.
- How the brands relateWho leads, who follows, who stands alone.
- Where each finds its orbitRoom to grow without crowding the others.
Related services
Questions we hear
What is brand architecture?
Brand architecture is how the brands in your business relate to one another. It decides which brands lead, which follow and which stand alone, and sets the rules for how new brands and products join. The three common models are branded house, house of brands and hybrid.
Branded house, house of brands or hybrid, which is right for me?
A branded house puts one parent name on everything, as Tata does. A house of brands lets each brand stand alone, as Hindustan Unilever does. A hybrid sits between the two, with parent and sub-brand sharing the stage. When your brands share one promise, a single name builds trust faster. When audiences, prices or promises differ widely, separate brands protect each other. When both are true, a hybrid usually fits.
What do ratios like 95:05 and 50:50 mean?
A ratio shows how much of a brand belongs to the master brand and how much to the sub-brand. The first number is the master brand, the second is the sub-brand. 95:05 is almost all parent, as in Tata Salt. 05:95 is almost all sub-brand, as with Surf. The hybrid covers everything between, including 70:30, 50:50 and 30:70. We help you choose a ratio for each brand, then write it down as a rule.
When does a business need brand architecture?
When you have more than one brand or product line, when you are about to launch or acquire, or when your team argues about names and logos for every new launch.
What is the Brand Meridian Model?
It is our own framework for portfolios. It maps where each brand sits, how the brands relate to one another, and where each one finds its own orbit. You see the full model when we begin.
Does brand architecture affect naming?
Yes. Architecture decides whether a new product carries the parent name, an endorsement line or an entirely new name. See Brand Naming for how we find the name itself.
Bring order to your portfolio.
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