Bevan Bloemendaal Promoted to Chief Brand and Creative Officer at NELSON Worldwide

(PRESS RELEASE) MINNEAPOLIS — As part of an ongoing strategic effort to reorganize under a practice-led model, NELSON Worldwide, award-winning architecture, design, and strategy firm, has promoted VP and Retail Practice Leader Bevan Bloemendaal to Chief Brand and Creative Officer.

The firm has also announced the addition of Sean McCorry as Vice President, National Business Leader in both the Retail and Hospitality Practices.

Bloemendaal’s forward-thinking, whole-brained approach paired with CEO John “Ozzie” Nelson Jr.’s entrepreneurial spirit will further strengthen the powerful bond between the brand and consumer in the built environment and beyond. Bevan’s promotion comes on the heels of a “pivot to practice” strategy launched two months ago that shifts NELSON’s organizational structure from a regional model to one led by each of its ten practices/platforms – Retail, Workplace, Mixed-Use, Industrial, Healthcare, Hospitality, Asset Strategy, and Civic, Community, Justice, and Education (CCJ&E), Global Solutions and Architectural Implementation.

In this newly created role, Bevan is uniquely positioned to elevate design and strategy across the whole of the firm. He’ll serve as creator, evangelist, and quantifier, forming a critical bridge between magic and logic and art and science and partnering with practice leaders to shape the NELSON brand purpose, creative vision, and visual brand language to ensure relevance in a highly competitive and constantly evolving industry. Bloemendaal will lead the Brand Marketing, Sales Marketing, Strategy & Insights, Digital Experience, and Brand Identity and Communications groups.

Prior to joining NELSON, Bloemendaal served as the Vice President of Global Retail Experience & Creative Services at the Timberland Co. as a creative leader who delivered disruptive marketing solutions.

McCorry will lead the firm’s retail and hospitality efforts nationwide from an operations and business perspective, working closely with the respective practice leaders and bringing over 25 years of experience managing global concepts and delivering premium brand concepts with a return on investment. Sean’s addition highlights the firm’s continued commitment to creating transformative environments and providing unparalleled client service.

Sean will work closely with leadership and junior staff to improve architectural and design practices within the retail and hospitality studios. In addition to mentoring throughout the design process, he will also help simplify architecture and design processes that cause a time burden on team members. Sean will oversee projects from start to finish while also educating architects and designers on the business side of the industry to strengthen client relationships.

Prior to joining NELSON Worldwide, Sean served as Director of Global Store Environments for Timberland, where he oversaw both design initiatives and projects in supporting growth of both Global Retail and Wholesale environments by delivering 200-plus environments annually.