First D.I.D.I.T sprint done. Three time zones — Pacific, Mountain, Eastern — on the same call. Some of the sharpest people in US Action Sports in one virtual room for four hours at a stretch, arguing about the right problem to solve before any of us put a pen to a screen.
Turns out remote-first didn't slow this down. It sharpened it. Fewer rooms to find, no flights, tighter notes. The interesting unlock isn't that we replaced the room — it's that the format forces decisions to be written down rather than nodded at.
Next week is the punchier bit. Four days to take the concept we landed today, build a working prototype, and put it in front of real riders. Not stakeholders. Not focus groups. Riders. Whatever they tell us becomes the brief for the build. Most agencies take three months to get to that conversation. We're doing it in eight working days. Then we build.
Ian Howarth
January 2, 2020
WORK - Virgin Money appointed North to brand, position and design its new suite of consumer cards.


