A limited-edition merchandise collection celebrating the history, emotion, and future of the Mustang
—designed, manufactured, and delivered at speed for a live experiential event.[The Challenge]
Ford was preparing for a high-profile experiential event in Los Angeles designed to celebrate the legacy of the Mustang.
What started as a request for standard merchandise quickly revealed a deeper need: Ford didn’t want logo product. They wanted a way for attendees to take the Mustang with them—to leave the event with something tangible that carried meaning, memory, and emotional weight.
+ PRODUCT DESIGN
+ CREATIVE DIRECTION
+ MANUFACTURING
+ EXPERIENTIAL MERCHANDISING
[Services]
Because not everyone can take home a car.
But everyone can take home a piece of the story.
[The Insight]
Namebrand recognized that the merch wasn’t an accessory—it was the lasting touchpoint. The opportunity wasn’t to decorate products with Mustang logos, but to design a gift-shop-level collection that felt worthy of the brand’s history and future.
This meant rethinking the role of merchandise entirely:
From promotional → retail quality
From single items → cohesive collections
From logo placement → storytelling through form, material, and detail
[The Approach]
Namebrand took ownership of the vision.
Instead of flooding Ford with disconnected product options, the team organized the collection into three distinct but unified lines—each reflecting a different chapter of the Mustang story:
Vintage Mustang, Modern Mustang and American Icon.
[Vintage Mustang]
Contemporary silhouettes, streetwear fits, bold textures, and materials that reflected innovation, performance, and the future-facing side of the brand.
[Modern Mustang]
Contemporary silhouettes, streetwear fits, bold textures, and materials that reflected innovation, performance, and the future-facing side of the brand.
[American Icon]
Contemporary silhouettes, streetwear fits, bold textures, and materials that reflected innovation, performance, and the future-facing side of the brand.
With the vision approved, the real work began.
[The Execution]
From project win to event day, Namebrand had eight weeks to design, source, manufacture, and deliver a collection spanning 60+ unique products—many featuring techniques and finishes the team had never attempted before.
Key execution challenges included:
Coordinating 23 suppliers and 29 total partners across apparel, hard goods, decoration, logistics, and on-site setup
Navigating minimal physical proofing time, requiring real-time approvals via FaceTime, video, and live production oversight
Introducing CMYK screen printing for the first time to enable photo-real imagery on apparel
Developing new silhouettes, decoration techniques, oversized prints, specialty tags, patches, embroidery, ceramics, metal goods, and textured materials
Manufacturing products before final creative decisions were locked to meet immovable deadlines
In the final days, the team was on site—tagging, staging, and building out the retail experience—often seeing physical products for the first time as boxes were opened on the floor.
It was high risk. High pressure. And exactly where Namebrand thrives.
