Richard Shear

As a designer, husband, teacher, father, athlete, author and historian Richard’s 50-year career has been influenced by a fascination with visual history, driven by a curiosity for the culture of consumer brands, and guided by rich experience in brand identity and package design. As a Founding Partner and Chief Creative Officer of Invōk Brands, his expertise lies in helping clients uncover the visual heritage of their most iconic brands and using this design equity to help them build and position brands in ways that inform, connect and motivate. He has had the privilege of working with a wide range of global CPG clients in the beauty, beverage, food, personal care, household product and retail private brand categories. As a Founding Faculty member of the Masters in Branding program at New York’s School of Visual Arts, his course, The Evolution of CPG Brands, focuses on the origin, history, evolution, and current status of retail brands. It builds an awareness of the rich legacy and growth of the global consumer culture and its intrinsic connection to the evolution of visual history. As an adjunct to his research, he will be publishing, “A History of Brands: Origins of Consumer Markets”, scheduled for release by Rockport Publishers in 2025. He is also a Contributing Editor of “The Brand Bible, The Complete Guide to Building, Designing, and Sustaining Brands”. He has been a frequent speaker at conferences including HOW/Dieline and the Design Management Institute consistently contributing to thought leadership on critical issues facing the retail brand design community. He has been a guest lecturer at colleges including Columbia Business School, Trinity College, and the Fashion Institute of Technology, as well as the President Emeritus of both the American Institute of Graphic Design’s Branding Chapter and the Package Design Council. Richard has a BFA from Temple University’s Tyler School of Art and attended Yale School of Management’s AIGA program for senior design leadership.