Accept & Proceed rewires Vans brand with new visual and conceptual system

London-based design studio Accept & Proceed has overhauled Vans' visual and conceptual foundation, creating a new brand system, standards, and product branding guidelines. The project aimed to resolve fragmentation from the brand's multiple owners and eras since its 1966 founding. The reset is guided by the north star 'Our Canvas. Your Way,' centering the brand's relationship with communities. Creative director Stephen Heath explains the studio created a two-layer framework defining fixed and flexible elements, encouraging participation over control. The process began with stripping the brand to basics and a comprehensive audit of product portfolio applications. Typography was refined by introducing Pitch Mono as a supporting voice alongside Vans' existing Fann Doren family, with emphasis on condensed styles. Heath notes the biggest challenge was cultural, as skateboarding subcultures are skeptical of manufactured branding. The breakthrough came from reframing Vans as a brand built around creative possibility rather than just a skate brand.