Nonfiction is a brand and design agency. We use strategy and creativity to help companies invent the future. What we do today determines the future. And if we don’t shape it, it will shape us.

Our Approach

We think first and design later.

Sounds obvious, but it’s not.

We make things smarter.

That requires being infinitely curious.

We create more meaning and less noise.

If everyone is shouting, no one is heard.

We build relationships.

Between you and us, and you and your audience.

We look forward.

Thinking ahead means we aren’t falling behind.

What We Do

01

Brand Foundation

We merge the head and the heart to invent and reinvent brands.

Together, we create meaning, identity, and emotion. You take charge of defining who you are. We bring the intangible to life so you break through the noise to become more desirable and valuable. And you begin to shape your own future, today.

Brand + Messaging Audits
Audience + Competitor Insights
Brand Architecture
Brand Strategy and Positioning
Brand Voice + Messaging
Naming
Visual Identity + Logos
Brand Guidelines + Design Tools
Creative Strategty + Direction

02

Brand Experience

We use emotion, ideas, and dedication to design living, breathing brands.

We mix strategic message with creative magic. You connect with the people that matter most. We balance the timeless and the current. And you grow a magnetic and fluid brand that can’t be ignored.

User Experience + Digital Design
Copywriting + Content Planning
Social Media Assets
Printed Materials
Art Direction and Photography
Packaging Design
Illustration
Branded Environments

Our Team

Jeff Packard

Partner, Strategy Director

Neil Wengerd

Partner, Creative Director

Kimmy Alexander

Project Manager

Zach Wilke

Art Director

Amanda Burnside

Graphic Designer

Anne Knellinger

Junior Designer

AAAS
Antioch College
BalletMet
Berkeley Haas School of Business
Braided River Brewing Co.
Cal Poly
Capital University
Cincinnati Concours d’Elegance
Columbus Museum of Art
Columbus State Community College
Echo Spirits Distilling
Huntington Bank
JobsOhio
Meeder Investments
Oculii
Olive AI

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jeff-bio

Jeff Packard

Partner, Strategy Director

Jeff Packard is a partner and Nonfiction's strategy director. He spent the first half of his career as design director at an internationally known arts center and the second half working on strategic corporate and startup brands. These experiences shaped his belief that creativity and strategy are undeniably linked. His passion is making sure that ground-breaking design is aligned with short- and long-term business goals.

Jeff has also been a marathon runner, race car driver, mountain biker, and spontaneous 8,000 mile road tripper. He has lived in Columbus, Philadelphia, and Boston, but his heart is in the mountains out west.

LinkedIn

neil-bio

Neil Wengerd

Partner, Creative Director

Neil Wengerd is a partner, creative director, and resident dad joke expert. He’s known for making obscure movie references, always having a stack of unread books near by, and having every Seinfeld episode memorized. He’s a husband to one and dad to two. Somehow, he still gets seven hours of sleep every night.

Neil learned the power of hard work from his coal-mining and woodworking family. He leads the studio and creative team with an even keel, and he’s developed brands for scrappy startups, rowdy iconoclasts, established juggernauts, and everything in between. Frankly, he’s too curious to be pigeonholed. With a thoughtful approach and unique instinct for design, Neil has helped Nonfiction cement its reputation for smart, meaningful, and beautiful design.

kimmy-bio

Kimmy Alexander

Project Manager

Kimmy Alexander is Nonfiction’s project manager, sticky note organizer, and spreadsheet wizard. Kimmy’s a member of the local Stitch ’n Bitch, volunteers with local theatres in the costume department, and loves food and books. Someday, she’ll have a children’s book published (but only one). Kimmy is proudly Filipino and travels back often. Maganda doon!

Kimmy started her career as a graphic designer. She may be a project manager by title, but she's a creative at heart. She has years of experience managing projects, growing accounts, and producing video and photo shoots for big-name clients. We won’t namedrop, but Patek Philippe, Pernod Ricard, PINK, and Pixar are the ones that start with P. Conceptually driven and technically grounded, Kimmy makes sure our work pushes the envelope without tearing it in half.

LinkedIn

zach-bio

Zach Wilke

Art Director

Zach Wilke is an art director, photographer, and has been called Nonfiction’s resident “curator of hobbies”, always learning something new. When he’s not at a computer working, he’s probably trying to get far away from one—hiking, cycling, and dog-walking—or in the kitchen, shaking, slicing, and kneading his way through a new cocktail or recipe.

Zach brings conceptual thinking and a focus on details to every project. He’s worked with social enterprises and nonprofits, arts organizations, local distilleries and breweries, and large-scale retail clients. He particularly loves helping small businesses get off the ground, and passionately believes in the ability of thoughtful design to make his community a more harmonious and joyful place.

amanda-bio

Amanda Burnside

Graphic Designer

Amanda Burnside is a graphic designer and connoisseur of funky earrings. When she’s not roller skating or making elaborate grilled cheeses, she’s known to watch scary movies or play an un-ironic ukulele. She and her fiancé have a small and wily pack of animals comprised of a French Bulldog, a frog, and a bearded dragon.

Amanda’s experience working in-house with creative teams in the startup world has informed her entrepreneurial spirit and her ability to manage projects with ease. She has an infectious optimism, a can-do attitude, and a passion for creating better solutions. This helps her engage with people through meaningful design experiences. Above all, Amanda is in the business of turning frowns upside down.

anne-bio

Anne Knellinger

Junior Designer