Roanne Adams

RoAndCo.
NEW YORK NY

Chief Creative Director, Roanne Adams launched her female-led creative studio RoAndCo in 2006. The studio first gained buzz in the design world for Roanne’s intrepid ability to build successful, scalable brands from the ground up. Over the past decade, Roanne and her team have helped launch hundreds of new brands across the fashion, beauty, tech and lifestyle industries and have worked with Fortune 500’s, among them Google, Nike, and several Estée Lauder companies.

Throughout her career, Roanne has cultivated a following of design professionals, devout clients, and mentees. As a studio founder, she fosters a hands-on, collaborative culture for her team, many of them female, whom she has championed in their own path to leadership. She has dedicated time and professional effort to non-profit initiatives like the Women’s March, Together We Rise, and more. In 2017, Roanne was named by UN Women, a Champion Of Change for her leadership in advocating for equal pay for women in the Design & Advertising industry.

To her clients and contemporaries, Roanne is an exemplary leader for her ability to zero in on the most succinct way to visually capture a brand’s personality and her relentless passion and contributions in service of a more sustainable and equitable world. She lives and works between NY & LA with her husband and two children.

HOW AND WHY DID YOU COME TO USE DESIGN TO ADVANCE SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE AND/OR SUSTAINABLE PROJECTS, CLIENTS AND CAUSES?

Designing for good has become our mission at RoAndCo. Brands are hugely influential on our culture and values. As designers of brands, we are especially conscious of the types of clients we engage with and the intent behind each communication. We, as co-creators of these brands must act as stewards of social & environmental responsibility.

For example, RoAndCo was asked to creative direct MAC Cosmetic’s groundbreaking 25th-anniversary VIVA GLAM campaign. This campaign was a celebration of the $500M that had been raised to help end AIDS/HIV and an expansion of the fund to support the inclusion of women, girls and LGBTQ+ communities around the world. When VIVA GLAM 25 launched earlier this year, MAC sold out of the Viva Glam lipstick in just five days.

As a female business owner, I’m compelled to advocate for female leadership. I feel strongly that all genders should be paid equally and have an equal say in the design & advertising industry. At RoAndCo’s tenth anniversary, I launched Romance Journal — a publication devoted to exploring truth and raising our collective consciousness through the female lens. The stories within each issue are my way of giving back to the women who have supported, inspired, and mentored me throughout my career.

The most recent issue, “Resistance,” celebrates female activists who have advocated for change for decades. Romance Journal’s 3rd issue will launch October ’19 in collaboration with Gucci, titled “Creation.” I hope that through this, we will collectively inspire others to speak their truth, and find their path and purpose in life.

DOES 2019 PRESENT ANY SPECIAL CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES, URGENCIES, OBSTACLES IN DEVELOPING GOOD AND/OR SUSTAINABLE DESIGN?

2019 is an incredibly consequential year for society. As a company, we are focused on two major challenges: encouraging people to vote in the 2020 presidential elections and steering consumer behavior towards sustainable products and environmentally friendly practices. Our president and government cannot be relied on to do what is necessary to reverse climate change, so it is important for brands to act responsibly now more than ever. We help our clients understand that doing good can actually help the bottom line and attract customers who share the same values. Each of us is responsible for taking action, this is our way of ensuring we are doing our part.