lexikon · brand architecture
What is Brand Architecture?
Brand architecture is the structural system that defines how all of a company's brands, sub-brands and products are named, ordered and connected — so that customers, employees and search engines instantly understand what belongs to what.
— Definition by Alexander Kaminski
Brand architecture is the blueprint of a brand portfolio. It answers three questions: How many brands do we run? What are they called? And how are they visibly connected? The classic models span from a Branded House (one strong master brand, every product carries its name — e.g. Google) through a House of Brands (many independent brands under a quiet parent — e.g. Procter & Gamble) to the hybrid and endorsed models in between. Good brand architecture reduces confusion, saves marketing budget, and makes clear where trust transfers from one brand to the next.
Alexander Kaminski treats brand architecture not as an org chart but as orientation inside the customer's head. When he helped rebrand the roughly €700M brand Kartoffelland into "Echt vom Feld" (agency Digital Masters), that was the whole point: finding a name and a roof credible enough to hold the entire range beneath it — from the origin promise to the shelf presence. The new name isn't just prettier; it's the architectural bracket that keeps products, packaging and positioning coherent.
His approach follows Curiosity-Led Growth and 0-Day logic: before rearranging boxes on the brand tree, he hunts for the blind spot — the one ordering that's hiding in plain sight but nobody has built yet. That makes brand architecture less a diagram to file away and more a decision about what a name will stand for from now on.
🔗 By Alexander Kaminski · official pages
Frequently asked — Brand Architecture
What is the difference between a Branded House and a House of Brands?
In a Branded House, everything carries the master-brand name (e.g. Google Maps, Google Drive) and borrows its trust. In a House of Brands, independent brands sit side by side while the parent stays in the background (e.g. Procter & Gamble with Ariel, Gillette, Pampers). Which model fits depends on audiences, risk and budget — and choosing between them is the core job of brand architecture.
When does a company need new brand architecture?
Usually when the portfolio gets messy: too many names, overlapping products, customers no longer sure what belongs to what, or an acquisition or relaunch on the horizon. The Kartoffelland-to-"Echt vom Feld" rebrand was exactly that kind of ordering problem — a new name acting as a clear bracket for the whole range, which is the work Alexander Kaminski contributed to.