Herman-Scheer

Chief Creative Officer

Herman-Scheer is a branding agency in Venice, CA that helps entrepreneurs come to market.

Co-Founder

AIGA Los Angeles

Advisory Board Member

Member

The University of Arizona

Graphic Designer

Point to Point, Inc.

- Creating and developing case studies for their finished B2B projects.
- Sitting in on creative briefs for new projects
- Participate in brainstorming sessions with copy and creative director.

Intern

Building and evolving brands

Hi, I'm John, Chief Creative Officer at Herman-Scheer, a strategic and creative brand consultancy. We believe the businesses that prioritize connection over transaction are the ones that succeed. 

Since 2010, Herman-Scheer has helped change the way businesses make people feel. We have big heart and daring instincts. A sunny disposition and assertive gait. 

I consider myself a people-people kind of person, enamored by how brands connect to people and how people connect to brands. I love working with businesses that—put simply—keep people healthy and happy.

My career journey has been about embracing the idea that friction makes fire. 

I believe in mixing the intuitive and familiar with the audacious and novel, creating a healthy tension to captivate and engage. This friction, this interplay of ideas, is where I believe brands find their true voice and distinctive edge.

Alongside Chapin, (The Herman to my Scheer), we’ve built an agency with a strong POV: great health and self-care brands create narratives and identities aimed at changing behaviors—experiences so compelling that customers stick with a product or service even before they see the tangible benefits.

If you're in the wellness industry looking to evolve your brand toward lasting impact, let’s talk shop.

Feel free to reach out here or email me at john@herman-scheer.com.

All eyes on the Recovery space - a wellness sector dramatically gathering pace.

Within health and wellness, we’re seeing sub-categories grow so fast they’re creating categories of their own.

Recovery is one of those:

→ Compression Recovery Systems (think Hyperice’s Normatec) - just a small segment of the recovery space - is set to grow at 7.1% CAGR to 2031, where it will be valued at $2.46b alone

→ The Sports Medicine Market (check out Myodetox) - another segment of recovery - currently valued at $5.46b per year is projected to grow at 8.1% CAGR until 2031

And what’s driving growth here?

1. Consumer awareness:

More and more consumers recognize the role of recovery in performance.

Previously reserved for the injured and serious athlete market, recovery is now part of the wellness journey of the every day consumer who wants to feel good in their daily activities.

2. Tech advancements:

The democratization of tech flooding the space is incredible - Take KINEON INC. (see cheesy photo of me with it wrapped around my neck). 

Kineon enhanced light therapy stimulates blood flow, promotes collagen and cartilage production, and gives the body’s self-healing capabilities a big boost.

Enhanced light therapy, previously reserved for the most elite sports teams - is now available for consumers, at accessible prices.

3. New products:

And this will only continue to drive growth.

As innovative start-ups and established fitness companies get their hands on high end tech, new products will continue to flood the market finding net new customers in the process.

Check the latest Nike recovery products with Hyperice btw!

The future here is exciting…

Who’s crushing it in the recovery space?

Tag them below 👇

John Scheer

A huge challenge for supplements brands is the need to simplify the complexity of their formulations and the promised effect it has on our wellbeing.

Oftentimes, the simpler the better for the consumer. Helping them understand it and buy into it.

But what if there’s a beauty in the complexity?

Seed Health has done an amazing job of embracing the nuanced nature of their product.

Take for instance, the hero section of their homepage.

‘Probiotics are a science’

Essentially, that reads as ‘Complex are a Complex’.

No attempt made to make probiotics feel simple… Because they’re not.

Navigate to the ‘Science’ tab and you’ll find more unadulterated scientific complexity.

Within minutes you’re reading about ‘Probiotic Strain Variation’, ‘Biofermentation’ and ‘Flow Cytometry’.

Head to the ‘Culture’ tab and you’ve got more information on your Microbiome than you’ve ever seen in one place before.

Seed embraces the beautiful complexity of their product.

It shows customers there’s a load of credibility built into the product. Building trust.

But it’s the execution of how they present the complexity that makes it successful.

Beautifully modern aesthetic.

Ruthlessly concise writing.

Immersive and emotive art direction.

Bravo Seed. It’s no wonder all of our clients reference you.

What do you all think?

Nearly 20% of US children have obesity.

This is up from 5.5% in the 1970s.

The causes are increasingly alarming too… 

In low income areas, the rate of obesity is above 20%

In the highest income areas, the rate of obesity drops to 9%

Wealth is turning into one of the clearest predictors of health available.

So what can be done?

Unsurprisingly, Non-Profits are leading the way…

Wholesome Wave is on a serious mission… To end food and nutrition insecurity across America by increasing the affordability and access to fresh produce for everyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, income, or zip code.

Similarly, Brighter Bites not only delivers healthy food. They teach families how to use it and track the healthy impact.

But what about brands?

KIND Snacks run the KIND Foundation, helping to build healthier communities around the world.

Whole Foods Market have the Whole Kids Foundation, educating children on healthy food choices.

And of course, the likes of Pepsi, Nestle, Unilever and others have initiatives too… Most would argue this is off-setting just a fraction of the damage caused in the first place.

The need for action is clear… Health inequality needs addressing.

The question for brands is… Are they obliged to help?

And if so, can they give it the care and attention they give their profit making activities?

What’s your view?

I ate at BIBIBOP Asian Grill last week and left incredibly impressed…

The only restaurant I’ve seen that lists the food’s functional benefit on the menu.

Far more than flavor profile.

Far more than simply listing calories.

They’re giving customer clear insight into how each item will benefit them… In doing so, they cleverly emphasise the healthiness of their food.

Plus, the price:

$10 for a Well Being Meal → That’s affordable, healthy, fast food 🙏

Great to see brands like this growing and doing well.

Anyone else seen functional benefits listed on the menu???

I believe the best creatives…

- Re-imagine tired product lines
- Re-think entire business models
- Re-create old industries
- Re-invent customer journeys
- Re-vitalise company cultures
- Re-discover forgotten legacies
- Re-structure old ways of thinking

They go far beyond the aesthetic and the message.

Don’t box your creatives into design and copy execution…

When it comes to the big strategic discussions, give them a seat at the table.

I stumbled across this on TikTok… Found it equally exciting and terrifying…

China has always been living in the future compared to us.

And now…

Kids playing this…game?… Great to see kids active… But also, they’re a little too legit.

Is this a weird training exercise?

Big picture though… Is this a glimpse into our future here in the states - perhaps paving the way for Fortnite in real life? Integrating AR into the mix?

It can’t be far away.

I mean anything that gets kids up and exercising can’t be bad right?

And honestly it looks really fun - I’d like to give it a shot.

But, maybe without the guns might be a better bet.

What do you think??

Children born today can expect to live 20 years longer than their grandparents (born in the 1960s).

Since the 60s, the number of centenarians has increased 30x too.

No doubt, we’ve worked out how to keep ourselves alive longer.

Good result right?

Yes and no.

For every extra year of life expectancy we add, we add 6 months of poor health…

And that ratio has maintained consistent for decades.

The issue is stark when you see the numbers:

→ Two-thirds of people experience cognitive impairment around 70 years old
→ 19m hospitalized US patients find it hard to walk a mile
→ 2b people (worldwide) experience chronic pain
→ 548m people (worldwide) experience poor mental health

The list goes on.

We know how to live longer…

We haven’t mastered how to stay healthy.

Isn’t the future bright though?

New attitudes towards health are appearing:

Instead of ‘wait and see’. We now proactively say ‘Let’s see for ourself’.
Instead of purely physical. We now embrace every element of health (mental and spiritual).
Instead of feeling stigma and taboo. We openly share experiences and communities around ailments.

These new attitudes are backed by democratized technology.

Wearables such as ŌURA give us new insights on previously unknown stats.
Testing companies such as Lifeforce give us a view on our vital health, helping us to make great proactive health decisions.

The tools are there for the public.

Of course, there’s one small problem.

Many of these new advancements are out-of-pocket… And inaccessibly priced.

The wealthy can afford to be healthy…

Perhaps those less fortunate can’t.

This is something that needs to be addressed in time. Mandates to include proactive health in all insurance policies are a good start.

The fact we’ve mastered the art of living longer is a great thing…

Now’s the time to shift our focus.

Life-span: Check ✅
Health-span: WIP 🚧

How do you keep a customer when they won’t feel the impact of your product for up to 90-180 days?

I found a brand that is doing an exceptional job at conquering the delayed gratification that so many supplements have to overcome when getting their consumers to commit. 

Check out these Mitopure Softgels from Time Line.

Supplements that promise to improve your cellular health by delivering 6x more Urolithin A than can be found naturally in drinks like pomegranate juice.

But here’s the catch… It’s 60 days before you ‘feel’ the benefits.

In that time, as a customer, you’re paying for supplements and on the surface you can’t feel the impact.

This is the supplement challenge - creating brand loyalty in the context of delayed gratification.

Time Line have a solution to this.

Firstly, messaging - ‘your cells feel the benefits before you do’.

Beautiful.

Next, an interactive timeline (see below).

Customers can see the impact every step of the way, starting from 8 hours in.

Plus, long-term presentation.

Optimal cellular health isn’t achieved until 365 days in, giving customers a long-term end goal.

It’s a well executed solution to the challenge and I’m sure it’s working well for them.

What other brands out there are tackling the delayed gratification challenge well?

Younger people are more focused on generalized wellness than just exercise.

More and more Gen Z and Millenials are pursuing holistic wellbeing, instead of simply exercising to get fit.

This is the latest proof that lines between general wellbeing and fitness are blurring.

And what does that mean for brands?

The scope for fitness brands is expanding beyond just physicality.

Take ŌURA for example… Beautiful UX, highly focused on physical health markers…

But with holistic advice on mental health, stress-relief and maintaining calm built into the app too.

Even brands like lululemon and Whole Foods Market have broadened their scope to give advice, content and build communities around mindfulness.

It’s logical for brands to follow this pattern, as with everything though, it’s in the execution.

Pursuing spiritual and mental health is a profound endeavor… Can it be achieved with the help of a brand simply ‘dabbling’ in mental health content?

Unlikely.

For brands to embrace the blurred lines of physical health and generalized wellbeing, they need to commit fully.

Putting some mindfulness content and some free meditations on your socials probably won’t cut it.

What’s your view?

Any brands successfully transitioned from physical health focused to a genuine holistic health player?

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