Designer Spotlight, Mentor Spotlight

Nakita Pope

Tell us about you?

Nakita M. Pope is the Chief Chick and Principal Brand Strategist of Branding Chicks, a boutique branding agency in Atlanta, GA with clients all over the United States. Branding Chicks specializes in brand strategy, development, consulting, and management for femme-owned businesses and femme-focused brands.

She also helps businesses to brand or re-brand to attract and grow customer bases for new products and professional services through custom, creative, relevant brand-promoting strategies. Over the past 25 years, she has worked as a strategist, graphic designer, creative director, and brand manager, which has given her experiences that inform how she works with her clients.

Her passion for brand strategy also extends to her advertising strategy, branding, and design professorship at The Creative Circus for the past 13 years. In 2019 she also took on an additional role as their Diversity & Inclusion Advisor and the Design Department Chair role in 2021. In 2020 she was also named one of Graphic Design USA Magazine’s People to Watch and then in 2021 she was honored as an AIGA Atlanta Fellow.

What are some of your favorite tools or applications you use? Or can’t do without?

The Adobe Creative Suite (of course), Later for scheduling social media, Acuity Scheduling for keeping all my calendars and meetings straight, and I like to revisit painting and mixed media whenever I can.

What type of work do you enjoy most?

Brand Strategy is my love right now. It allows me to dig deep with my clients and guide them through every aspect of their brands (defining their audiences, positioning their products or services in the market, visual identity, messaging, social media strategy, etc.).

What advice do you have for younger or less experienced Black/AA designers?

Be open and try everything. A creative career is just like a creative project. It can have lots of twists and turns, but if you’re open to learning along the way sometimes you end up in a better place than you’d originally conceived.

What would you say is the best way to take advantage of the AAGD network?

Meet as many people as you can. There is a wealth of knowledge and experiences in this group, but also you never know who could end up being your next collaborator, employee, boss, or friend.

How do you deal with creative block?

I go in search of inspiration and take a step back from whatever I’m working on. Sometimes on social media. Sometimes a walk in the park or the museum. For me, I have to do something. It rarely breaks on its own.