hello, we’re hi, hello
how we work
Every project follows the same proven, flexible and collaborative path to success. We start with the business challenge, dig in and immerse ourselves in the business need. We then ideate and steadily hone a final product.
1. define
Inside every problem is an opportunity.
We dig in to understand all sides — the business challenge, competitive landscape and consumer needs — in search of key insights that will inform and validate the design solution.
2. build
Craft the key visual story that best addresses the challenge.
We put together a variety of visual aproaches, each its own distinct system of tools, and show them applied to key activations so you can see how it would come to life.
3. express
Develop the solution exactly to your needs.
The design is refined to a single direction, making sure to stand out from competition, attract the consumer and reinforce the brand.
who we are
Hi, Hello is made up of three founders, each with 25+ years experience in brand design.
Katie Heit Gardner
Creative Director
Katie’s sweet spot is building brands—whether from the ground up or by evolving or expanding upon what already exists. She loves seeing the big picture while also digging into the details to ensure every element works seamlessly.
Always rooting her work in brand strategy, she has led brand experience projects across identity, packaging, spaces, publication design, and digital.
Nathan Hinz
Creative Director
There’s a decent chance you encountered something Nathan made today. Maybe it was the badge on the grill of a semi truck, the salsa you’re eating for lunch or the whiskey in your Old Fashioned. He brings a high level of craft and strategic thinking to brand design, with long stretches of his career dedicated to brand identity, packaging and digital design for brands like BMW, Coca-Cola, Jack Daniel's and Sonos.
Michael Murray
Managing Director
Michael is an Effie-winning agency leader, brand strategist and marketer with 20+ years of experience at some of the most notable branding shops in Minneapolis and beyond. (See LI for all the deets.) In his free time, Michael goes to a lot of concerts, continues to buy way too much vinyl and loves spending time with his wife, three sons and two cats.
what we do
We design brands at all key consumer touchpoints, making us ideal for a focused project or a comprehensive overhaul.
strategy
Design is strategic at its foundation. Whether we work with existing information or shape the thinking ourselves, the business challenge drives the creative solution.
Brand architecture
Design thinking
Design brief creation
Visual territories
Competitive audits
Brand archetypes
Brand positioning
Naming
identity
Brands are visual, and they require the tools to stand out from competitors. This is our sweet spot, be it a light tweak or a full redesign.
Logo design
Brand identity systems
Brand evolution
Brand toolkits
Brand activation
Iconography
Brand illustration
Logo polish
digital
Screens are a brand’s most crucial touchpoint; a space to surprise, delight, educate, and ultimately convince. We build digital to be flexible for the future and easily usable for the consumer and client alike.
UX/UI
Website design
Social media templates
Pitch decks
Presentation templates
Motion graphics
packaging
Done well, design can drive someone to pick up a product, or make unboxing a special experience, or help someone reconsider an entire category.
Retail packaging systems
Alchohol + spirits
Food + beverage
Hardlines + softlines
Point-of-sale
Vessel design
Paper, glass, aluminum, food-safe plastics, etc.
Sometimes the biggest impact comes from a real, tactile, printed piece your customer can hold in their hands and is worth keeping.
Business systems
Collateral
Books
Magazines
Posters
Out-of-home
Direct mail
Production file creation
spaces
Branded envirionments are an opportunity to create experiences to see from afar, walk through and engage in memorable ways.
Retail spaces
Pop-ups
Environmental graphics
Trade shows
Launch events
Architect collaboration
Corporate offices
clients
We see ourselves as collaborators, partners and advocates for our clients interests.
We’re a relationship-based company, and our leaders are directly involved in every project, which means the person doing the work is likely the person you're talking to. We believe this is a more efficient and personable way to do business. And every client benefits from the wide range of business categories and brands we have experience with, be it small startup or global multi-national.
category experience
Ag-tech
Alcohol + spirits
Entertainment + culture
Food + beverage
Healthcare
Business-to-business
Civic + social causes
Food + beverage
Healthcare
Hospitality
Insurance
Retail + home goods
Science + technology
Sports + lifestyle
Travel + leisure
16 West 26th Street #200, Minneapolis, MN 55404
strategy
identity
digital
packaging
spaces
© 2026 Hi, Hello LLC