I am Mattias Johansson, the Art Director & Creative Brand Strategist behind Brigad. I turn high-level visions into concrete direction, building the assets that make your brand stand out and your organization proud to be part of the journey.

As your operational Brand Guardian, I take full ownership of your look and feel. In a landscape where visual consistency is easily lost to quick fixes and fragmented initiatives, I provide the creative stability your business needs to confidently take the next step.

I step in as a seamless extension of your daily operations. We navigate the creative process together, combining your business expertise with my execution. This means shorter decision paths, fewer meetings, and faster results. You get the creative firepower of a full brigade, delivered by a one-man task force.

Q&A

How does your setup and collaboration work?+

I operate flexibly based on what you need, through three main models:The In-House Retainer (my primary way of working, where I step in as your operational Brand Guardian 1–5 days a week for seamless, long-term collaboration),The Hourly Project (for flexible scopes, heavy production sprints, or on-demand support to unblock your team), and The Fixed Project (for defined scopes like a brand transformation or a strategic film, with a set timeline and fixed rate). No matter the setup, you get zero agency friction, short decision paths, and direct access to senior execution.

Get in touch to discuss which model fits your current needs.

We are looking for a long-term collaboration, not a temporary freelancer.+

My focus is exclusively long-term. I’ve worked closely with some of my clients for over a decade (see example: Ragn-Sells). With others, I step in as a strategic partner twice a year, for instance during three intensive weeks to secure the delivery of heavy trade catalogues when their internal workload peaks (see example: Björn Borg). I build relationships and machinery that last over time.

We don't have an in-house agency, it's just me as the Marketing Manager.+

Then I become your in-house department. I frequently work directly with marketing managers and business owners. We skip the middlemen. I manage the project, lead the production, handle the communications, and do the heavy lifting from start to finish. You get the delivery capacity and strategic height of a full agency, but with the agility of having just one point of contact.

We already have a full in-house team today.+

Perfect. But every department faces bottlenecks, sick leaves, or sudden workload peaks. I am used to plugging into existing teams as a tactical resource. Because I handle the entire chain, I can take on whatever role you need in the moment, whether it's graphic design, motion design, color grading, art direction or brand management. I am your flexible backup from day one.

You seem overqualified for us. What could you do for a company our size?+

The short answer: you get big-agency quality without the big-agency overhead. Many growing companies dream of hiring a top-tier advertising agency to elevate their brand, but the massive retainers and bloated processes get in the way. That is where I come in. You get the strategic depth and razor-sharp visual packaging of a full-scale agency, but your budget goes directly into the actual work. No account managers, no middle men. Just direct contact with the creative executing your vision.

We already have an advertising agency, so we probably don't need you?+

That is a great position to be in, and I often work alongside existing agencies. However, once the primary brand agency has done their job, the heavy lifting of everyday production begins. Your organization still needs high-end corporate presentations, internal communication, social campaigns, catalogs, information design, and trade show systems. I fill that exact gap. I take their high-level guidelines and execute your daily deliverables with zero friction, uncompromising quality, and agile speed.

Our technology and business logic are incredibly complex, and we don't have the time to educate you.+

I don't expect you to. My process is built on structuring information chaos into crystal-clear logic. I interview the right key people, ask the necessary questions, and build the systems. Together, we make the incomprehensible comprehensible. I handle the information design and execution, you fact-check and then we're good to go.

We need help communicating our brand, but you might find our product too traditional or "boring" to work with?+

On the contrary, that is exactly where I make the biggest impact. I’ve turned complex waste management into compelling visual narratives and transformed traditional factory floors into premium brand assets. There are no boring industries. In fact, traditional sectors are often where you find the most surprising stories, and where a high-end rebrand creates the most dramatic differentiation. You get the full creative firepower of an agency, executed by a one-man task force.

We operate in a very specific industry. Do you have the right expertise for us?+

With a background in both technical information design and large-scale commercial production, my specialty is quickly cracking the code of new, complex industries. I have built brand communication and systems in everything from cybersecurity and heavy industrial manufacturing to sustainability, youth culture, and sports fashion. My job is to explain what you do so the market understands it, no matter how narrow your niche is. The tougher the challenge, the better.

We don't have a clear corporate visual identity (CVI) and don't know where to start.+

No worries, we build the tracks while driving the train. We don't need to sit for six months with a brand manual before we start producing. I can start delivering commercial, sales-driven material from day one. We can either develop your identity organically step by step, or set a strict framework right away to guide you and your other suppliers.

We have a strong CVI that we want to keep exactly as it is. Can you work within our established guidelines?+

Absolutely. In fact, this is the most common scenario. I step into your existing framework and seamlessly continue the work as a natural extension of your team. Operating within strict brand guidelines is second nature to me. Working completely under the radar with zero friction, I execute everything from illustration, layouts and motion design to film and photography. I adapt to your pacing, whether you need fast, effective deliverables or pixel-perfect craftsmanship. And while I respect the rules, I am always ready with strategic advice on how to elevate your brand to the next level when you are ready.

We don't have any resources or technical tools in place...+

No problem, I bring the whole setup. I operate as a fully independent unit equipped with high-end hardware, industry-standard software licenses, professional photo and cinema cameras, lighting, audio gear, and mobile workstations. Whether we need to work from your conference room, out in the wild, or deep inside heavy industry facilities, I am completely self-sufficient, fully insured, and ready to deploy anywhere from day one.

Now that everyone has access to AI, can't you just build your brand yourself? +

Owning a brand is like owning a house. You can always buy a completely new one, but it’s a massive and expensive undertaking. You can also let everyone in the organization grab a hammer and start building. It feels productive in the moment, but without the right expertise, this unguided DIY approach often leads to hidden, structural flaws.

At first, the mistakes might not be obvious. But over time, as these isolated decisions compound, the foundation weakens. Ultimately, the house (your brand) risks losing its value entirely, becoming irrelevant to the market.

But when you take deliberate steps and maintain the structure with care, it constantly increases in value. Proper maintenance requires thought, discipline, and energy. This is exactly the craft I am driven by.

Today, we have tools that make it easier than ever for anyone to churn out content. But a hammer can't figure out how it all connects. A craftsman does. In the age of AI, having someone who actually owns, guards, and builds the brand (your house) is more critical than ever.

Instead of hiring a strategist who just hands over a PDF, you get a partner who rolls up their sleeves and does the work alongside you. You can leave your brand's face to be reinvented daily by isolated decisions, or we can build for the future together. The choice is yours.

Structured Maintenance & Strategy
Structured Maintenance & Strategy
Fragmented Decisions
Fragmented Decisions