Demo Day is an annual pitch competition that invests over $1 million into early-stage, Detroit-based companies with the potential to grow and scale. The event serves as both a platform and a catalyst—showcasing local talent, inspiring new ventures, and positioning Detroit as a thriving hub for small businesses and high-growth startups.
For this rebrand concept, our goal was to capture the entrepreneurial spirit through bold, expressive design. The visual identity centered around typographic variety, combining multiple fonts to reflect the diversity and individuality of the competing businesses. A vibrant, energetic color palette gave the brand a fresh edge, while layered sticker-inspired elements were used to break the grid and inject movement and personality across collateral.
To tie into the competition's structure—where entrepreneurs compete in one of three categories: Start, Grow, or Scale—we used these classifications as a foundation for messaging, creating a system that was both functional and inspiring.
The result was a dynamic brand system that felt unapologetically bold—just like the founders it represents.
