There was a lot of buzz as we filed into the conference room. Something big was afoot.
“Whatta ya hearing?” Wilson asked, coming up behind me as I squeezed into the room with the others.
“Word is we’ll get a look at the new logo. We probably paid some ad genius, slash consultant, slash design firm, a million bucks to come up with something new. Probably because our old logo is one of the most recognized in the world, year after year. No sense letting that go on too long huh?” I said.
“Oh, gee. I heard it was a downsizing,” Wilson whispered. “Ad budgets are getting trimmed everywhere. It’s stating to trickle down now.”
“Thanks for ruining my morning,” I said, as we took seats across from each other about halfway down the long oval table.
There was no sign of upper echelon management in the place, just rank and file and some semi-senior managers like myself. At the head of the table was a laptop. On the wall behind the chair at the head of the table, a large flat-screen monitor flickered, waiting to display the inevitable PowerPoint presentation.
Then the room went dark, and all conversation ceased. We sat there for a moment in silence, and just when it became awkward, music started up. It was slow, techie kind of music, like from a sci-fi movie. It went on for a few moments too long before a man’s voice was heard.
“Space,” the voice said. “It’s all around us.”
I looked to my left, then my right to try and verify that others were experiencing this, and that I wasn’t cracking up.
Then the lights popped on, blinding us, and a man was standing at the head of the table. The sight of him gave me a start. People gasped. He was a guy in blue pants, black shirt open at the collar, and a head of black hair that hadn’t seen a brush or comb today, maybe ever.
Behind him the monitor flickered on, displaying his name.
Roberto Casbah
He spoke slowly, articulating every word and pausing between them.
“Simple. Is. The. New. Complex.”
I glanced around. He had the room. All eyes were fixed on him, even Wilson, who has the attention span of an over-caffeinated puppy.
Now the man began to speak at a normal rate. “For far too long we have muddied the message. Confused the consumer. That stops right here. Right now.”
He started to pace at the front of the room, rubbing his chin and seemingly lost in thought. Then he stopped, whirled and looked at us and said, “I am Roberto Casbah, and I’m taking you into your future.”
I heard someone clapping and looked over to see Wilson nodding and applauding. Others followed. It was like a cult meeting now.
Casbah was back at his laptop, hitting a few keys and saying, “Let me introduce you to your new look, your new logo, how the consumer will identify you now, and for all eternity.”
He hit a key and his name disappeared, leaving just a white screen. Casbah turned and looked at it and nodded admiringly.
“Ah, yes,” he said.
I looked at Wilson. He was enthralled. I swear I saw him mouth the words, “Ah, yes.”
“This is how the company will be known henceforth,” Casbah said.
Someone needed to speak up, and I felt I was just the person.
“Ah, Roberto,” I said, waving a finger to get his attention.
“Please, call me Toe,” he said. “Only my mother called me Roberto.”
“Like the digits?” I asked, confused.
“No, just Toe. No digits.”
“Toes, you know, digits. On our feet,” I said.
“I’m not sure I follow,” he said.
“Never mind. About the logo.”
“Ah, yes. Thoughts? Musings?”
“I don’t see anything.”
Toe nodded, then nodded some more. Everyone around the table nodded. They would walk on hot coals if asked.
“Precisely,” Toe said. “When you see nothing, you see everything.”
I heard a gasp or two. It was profound.
“Ah, no,” I said. “When I don’t see anything, I see nothing.”
Toe pointed at me accusingly and said, “But it’s of your own choosing that you see nothing.”
“Not if there’s nothing to see,” I said.
Toe went to the monitor and made a circular wiping motion.
“All of this is your logo, it tells the consumer all is possible,” he said. “Space. The space to create.”
The room went quiet for a moment as we all tried to get our arms around our new look. Someone spoke up from the other side of the table.
“I like it.”
It was Andy, the suck-up.
Toe nodded and did a little head jerk to flip his hair around, then asked, “This exciting new look is the work of Casbah Associates. We traveled to all corners of the globe to find out how consumers viewed your company. And this,” he said, turning to admire his work, “is what will propel you into the future.”
There was a round of applause and a few hoots, and a holler or two, and then Toe finished. “I trust there are no more questions.”
I gave a little finger wave again, and said, “Just one.”
Toe nodded and said, “Yes, please,” as if he would tolerate me.
“Are you hiring?”