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Brand Strategy, Identity & Storytelling


We help purpose-led pioneers tell their story and amplify their impact.

Inspired by this emerging wave of leaders, entrepreneurs and system-builders, we’re driven to create brands as brave as they are.



We partner with clients working in three key areas:



● Innovation

How can we remodel systems, develop new technology to improve lives, and create a better future through innovative ideas?





● Sustainability



How can we improve our relationship with the planet, protect the environment, and implement sustainable design practices?







● Compassion

How can we cultivate inclusive communities, celebrate diversity, and create a more equitable society?




About Us

We’re a mission-led studio using our creativity for positive change. We’re about good vibes, great work and collaborating with like-minded people.




Kevin Tran
Creative Direction, Strategy
Damien Attenborough
Research, Strategy, Storytelling





Our Process

Before launching Luka in 2016, our team spent a decade honing our process at award-winning branding and advertising agencies in London and Sydney.



Here’s how we work:

1) Foundational research

–  Stakeholder interviews
–  Competitor research
–  Research playback

We immerse ourselves in your world to understand your big vision for the future. Through workshops and interviews with teams, partners and customers, we discover what makes your organisation unique.




2) Purpose-led strategy

–  Brand strategy
–  Brand architecture
–  Mission
–  Vision
–  Values

Rigorous thinking underpins our process. From understanding the audience to defining what the brand should express, we create a concise strategy that guides our design decisions and takes the guesswork out of creativity.




3) Crafted design

–  Visual identity
–  Print design
–  Digital design
–  Motion design
–  Environmental design
–  Art direction
–  Illustration

A clear strategy is only half the solution – great brands are also beautifully executed. With a focus on conceptual thinking, craft and contemporary style, we design visual identities that can flex across digital, print, motion, physical spaces and experiences.




4) Compelling stories

–  Brand voice
–  Brand story
–  Messaging
–  Naming
–  Taglines
–  Scriptwriting

From rallying supporters to educating the public, every brand needs to move people through storytelling. Whether it’s a line on a billboard or a script for a film, we bring creativity, sensitivity and nuance to sharing your story with the world.




Cicada x Tech23


Where radical ideas become reality

The word ‘gamechanging’ gets thrown around a lot in the tech world, but it’s apt for the speakers and ideas shared on stage at Tech23.

Since 2000, the event has been an annual festival of deep tech – groundbreaking science and engineering-led technologies that can radically change the world – from super enzymes that eat plastic waste to aircrafts that emit only water.
In 2023, Cicada Innovations were invited to become the custodians of the long-running series to forge a new story of cutting-edge innovation in Australia.

The new Cicada x Tech23 event showcases and celebrates 23 deep tech startups tackling global challenges and driving the world forward.


Luka was asked to build on the Cicada Innovations brand, developing a bespoke strategy and identity system that reflected the event’s bold vision. We started the process by crafting a monogram for Tech23.




Cicada x Tech23 explores 5 key themes, from the future of the built environment to rethinking human health, envisaging decades ahead and unveiling the technologies and entrepreneurs that can get us there:

  • Shifting the Mindset on Medicine
  • Resilient Farming & Food Systems
  • Forging Industrial Futures
  • A Waste-Free World
  • Reimagining the Built Environment







We crafted distinct X forms to represent each of the themes. Together, they communicate the diversity of goals and ambitions being shared at the event.






As an amalgamation of the two identities, Cicada x Tech23’s primary logo boldly leads with just the acronym, 'CXT23' – taking the C symbol from the Cicada Innovations core brand and combining it with an X form and the new Tech23 monogram. Together, the set of symbols comes to life as dynamic and modular identity system.








The primary logo takes centre stage in big, impactful typographic arrangements, while the X forms can be used alone as an expressive graphic asset.






With the new visual identity ready to roll, the search began for Australia’s most promising emerging deep tech ventures. Of the 128 startups that applied to showcase their ideas, 23 were chosen to share their vision for the future with an audience of industry leaders, investors, and policymakers who were able to support them at a crucial stage in their journey.










After the event, we helped the team create an Insights Report that collated key insights that CXT23 had highlighted, revealing the gaps and misconceptions that persist in Australia’s deep tech narrative and importantly, how we can begin to rewrite it.




This report investigates the origin stories of several emerging deep tech founders and showcases insights that will make entrepreneurs rethink what it means to be a startup founder – encouraging governments, investors, universities and industry to reimagine their role in supporting the next wave of innovators.
The significance of this evolving body of work was reflected by a Silver Stevie Award for 'Thought Leader of the Year'.






Cicada continues to grow CXT23 year by year, showcasing new cohorts of visionaries and powerful ideas to invigorate the Australian science community.



“Luka crafted a fresh, distinctive sub-brand that seamlessly aligns with our existing brand family. It was essential for the brand to resonate both digitally and in real life, and they delivered brilliantly. The result is a playful, dynamic identity that empowers our internal team to express their own creativity. They developed a striking visual identity that stands out from other tech event branding.”


– Sian Priest, Group Executive Impact & Ecosystems