Wolff Olins CEO on AI, design and how to build a brand that stands out
Sairah Ashman has spent decades crafting some of the world’s most distinctive brands. The Drum caught up with her at Web Summit, shortly after her keynote, where she delivered a sharp warning to brands caught in the AI hype cycle: “Technology might make things smoother and faster, but it risks flattening everything. Efficiency is not the same as impact.”
Wolff Olins chief exec Sairah Ashman
The comment is vintage Ashman – direct, insightful and steeped in her deep belief that brands succeed when they embrace creativity, humanity, and, above all, boldness. Her talk at Web Summit in Lisbon focused on the challenges AI brings to the creative industries and how brands can resist the lure of blandness by anchoring themselves to four principles: uncover your essence, build with character, have conviction over consensus, and do what you can’t.
With her sharp mind and plain-speaking style, Ashman’s perspective is deeply grounded in experience. She left school at 16, skipping the traditional university route, and climbed to the top of one of the world’s most prestigious agencies. That practical, no-nonsense approach is evident as she unpacks what makes brands stick in a world dominated by frictionless convenience.
Ashman vividly illustrates the risk of flattening with a story about a recent stay in a minimalist, tech-driven hotel. “I checked in via an app, opened the door with my phone, and ordered room service using a QR code. It was seamless, sure. But there was nothing there to talk about, no story, no personality.”
She believes the same dynamic is creeping into brand-building as companies rush to automate every interaction. “If your brand becomes purely about efficiency, you’re just another featureless cog in the machine. AI can handle logistics, but it can’t create the emotional connections that make people remember you.”
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The four principles of distinctive branding
For Ashman, the antidote to this flattening lies in brands embracing her four principles, developed over years of shaping iconic identities.
Uncover your essence
The first principle is deceptively simple: brands need to know who they are. “Too many brands chase trends, jump on the latest zeitgeist, or just move from campaign to campaign without ever asking what makes them unique,” she says. “If you don’t understand your essence, how can you expect your audience to?”
She points to Decathlon as a perfect example. The sporting goods giant, beloved in France, undertook a massive rebrand in 2023, working with Wolff Olins to shift its image from retailer to global sports brand. “Decathlon didn’t want to be just a shop anymore. They wanted to be seen as a champion of sports for everyone,” Ashman explains. The result was a new identity that captured their essence: accessibility, inclusivity, and the sheer joy of sport. “They’re no longer just selling products; they’re selling a vision. That’s the power of uncovering your essence.”
Build with character
“Character is what makes a brand unforgettable,” says Ashman. “It’s the personality, the spark, the thing that makes you stand out in a sea of sameness.”
One of her favorite examples is the work Wolff Olins did for Tate. Back in 2000, the gallery needed a fresh identity to match its bold ambition of democratizing art and expanding its audience. The solution? A deliberately blurred logo that invited people to “look again.”
“At the time, it was unheard of to create a logo that was deliberately illegible,” Ashman says. “But that was the point: art challenges your perspective. The logo had to do the same.”
Tate’s branding helped transform it from a traditional, middle-class institution into an inclusive, dynamic brand that invited everyone to engage with art. “That’s what happens when you build with character. It sticks.”
Conviction over consensus
Ashman argues that great brands are built on bold decisions, not compromise. “When brands try to please everyone, they end up standing for nothing.”
The 2012 London Olympics branding is a case in point. Wolff Olins’ bold, jagged logo provoked outrage when it was first unveiled, but Ashman stands by it. “It was polarizing, sure, but it was memorable. It captured the energy, chaos, and creativity of London. And now, years later, it’s still iconic.”
Brands that want to stand out, she says, need to resist the temptation to play it safe. “You don’t get remembered by blending in.”
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Do what you can’t
This final principle is about ambition – breaking the rules and pushing boundaries to achieve the extraordinary. And nowhere is this better illustrated than Wolff Olins’ 2023 rebrand of Lloyds Bank.
“Rebranding a 300-year-old institution is no small feat,” Ashman says. “The risk is that you either strip away too much of the heritage or cling so tightly to tradition that you end up feeling dated. We had to find a way to make Lloyds relevant to modern audiences without losing what made it trusted in the first place.”
The solution? A fresh visual identity and tone of voice that seamlessly blended Lloyds’ history with a contemporary edge. “We brought in elements of British wit and resilience – traits that are timeless but also incredibly relevant today. It was about taking the best of the past and making it feel alive in the present.”
The project exemplifies “doing what you can’t” because it dared to challenge the conventional wisdom around banking brands. “Banks aren’t exactly known for their warmth or personality,” Ashman says with a laugh. “But Lloyds leaned into that challenge. They embraced their history and turned it into an asset. That’s what doing what you can’t is all about – turning limitations into opportunities.”
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The value of design in an AI-driven world
For Ashman, design remains the beating heart of branding. “Design isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s how you create meaning,” she says. “In an age where AI can churn out assets at lightning speed, the role of the designer is to bring humanity to the process.”
She’s quick to dispel fears that AI will replace designers. “AI is a tool. It’s great for efficiency, but it can’t replace taste, intuition, or creativity. What it does is free up designers to focus on the ideas, the concepts, the craft that makes brands stand out.”
Ashman also believes the industry needs to rethink how designers are trained. “We’ve become so specialized,” she says. “But designers need to be Renaissance thinkers dabbling in graphics, writing, strategy, even sociology. That’s how you solve complex problems.”
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The human touch in a digital world
Looking around Web Summit, Ashman sees a welcome shift in attitudes. “Last year, AI felt like a threat. Now, people are starting to see it as just another tool –something we can use without losing sight of what really matters.”
And what matters, for Ashman, is simple: humanity. “Brands are like people. The best ones are complex, singular, and full of personality. They know who they are, and they don’t compromise on that.”
It’s a timely reminder in an age dominated by technology. “AI might change how we work,” she says, “but it’s creativity, conviction, and character that will keep brands alive.” And with leaders like Ashman at the helm, it’s clear that the future of branding is in very capable hands.