Have you guys seen the adorable (… 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘥𝘥 …) mascot for the Summer Olympics Paris 2024?

In case you missed it, it’s a “Phyrge”, which is a red, triangle-shaped hat worn during the French Revolution that is a symbol freedom, French identity and spirit. 🇫🇷 And it’s all over their branded merchandise and swag.

Most importantly, the Phyrge mascot can teach us an important lesson: 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐡, 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐬.

Here’s what we can learn from cutie French Phyrge:

1️⃣ 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐟𝐮𝐥, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐚 𝐭𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐦𝐬𝐲.

Most of the Olympics merch is what you’d expect: French symbolism, plays on the Olympic rings, and a lot around “2024”. The Phyrge spices up the collection without dominating it.

2️⃣ 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧.

Merch doesn’t need to be serious all the time — you can play around with aspects of your brand and take some liberties with your brand message.

3️⃣ 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐮𝐥𝐚 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐞.

See all pixar movies ever for examples, but turning an inanimate object into a character (𝘴𝘭𝘢𝘱 𝘰𝘯 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦) is a really easy win.

Have you seen the Phyrge mascot? What do you think of it? Love or hate it? And more importantly: do you see an easy way to add whimsy to your own brand or company?