Search is easy. Discovery is everything.

Company - Posman Books

Summary

Posman Books had one thriving NYC store and one failed location they'd just shut down. When new leadership decided to go national, they had to figure out if the magic could travel.

The magic? It was in the chaos all along. Walk into most bookstores, and you get calm, organized, and intellectual. Walk into Posman, and you get bright green walls, music playing, books stacked in tall piles, and mystery buys wrapped in brown paper. No section signage. Chaos that feels right. The failed store had tried to look legitimate. They'd suppressed the chaos and killed what made it work.

Services

  • Brand Positioning

  • Visual Identity

  • Consumer Research

  • Retail Experience Design

  • Brand Guidelines

Animated gif of Posman Books graphic glasses rotating through diverse and playful patterns — retail brand identity by Beardwood
Posman Books store interior with colorful books, gifts, and disc-shaped ceiling decorations in multiple colors — retail brand experience design by Beardwood

THE BRAVE IDEA

Be the opposite of the internet.
Design for curiosity and surprise.

A place for discovery, not search. Design for curiosity and surprise. We validated the new identity with consumer research, then created a Brand Experience Map that made the Posman magic portable across any retail footprint. Eight years later: one store became six across five cities. Revenue tripled. And developers in five new markets are now competing to bring Posman to their cities. DBA Design Effectiveness Award winner.

Posman Books interior wayfinding and category signage — retail experience design by Beardwood
Posman Books store with colorful disc decorations, white shelving, and books and gifts on display — retail brand experience design by Beardwood

THE GROWTH

2017: Atlanta. 2018: Alpharetta. 2019: Boston. 2023: Pittsburgh. Then Miami in 2025—prime real estate next to Apple, across from the Museum of Ice Cream. Revenue up 311%. The team grew from 25 to 80. Developers in Tampa, Houston, Dallas, Raleigh, and Charlotte are calling them. Posman isn’t pitching anymore—they're choosing.

4th

Largest brick-and-mortar bookstore chain in the US

311%

REVENUE GROWTH IN EIGHT YEARS

A Posman Books green reading list card and white branded bookmark arranged on a chartreuse background — retail brand identity by Beardwood
A person carries a dark charcoal tote bag printed with the Posman Books brand mark and wordmark in green — retail brand identity by Beardwood
The original Posman Books logo with a green circle enclosing a white P above the wordmark
The redesigned Posman Books wordmark in two-tone overlapping green letterforms on a white background — retail brand identity by Beardwood
“

We have total confidence in the replicability of our model. We don’t waste time on meetings about how the store will look. It’s all been sorted out.

”

Robert Fader

VP, Posman Books

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