Dropping our latest: EQL Brand 2.0 "Passion" in Black, White, and Yellow Colorway

Ready for a throwback?

EQL was once called SNEAKQL. Pretty clever if you consider we were focused solely on hosting high-heat launches for the world’s most innovative sneaker brands and boutiques. 

But even then, in those early days as SNEAKQL, the team knew the mission was bigger.

Over the past couple of years, we’ve been getting closer to that mission, which is to help both fans and brands experience better launches—starting with more reliability, and more fairness. A level playing field. Now that we’ve solved the headache for brands and the heartbreak for fans, we’re working toward what comes next—and that’s more connection and more passion through launches.

Our start in sneakers was a great avenue to grow EQL and battle-test our tech with some of the biggest launches in the game. But today, EQL works across a world of different categories: collectibles, apparel, art, cars (cars!), events, wine, whiskey and more. And we’ve seen that we can deliver launch magic to any brand that shares these traits: 

• They care about culture and community 
• Their fans are insanely passionate
• And their products are immensely in-demand

So as we grow up, we’ve found our (new) style. A little less sneakers (though they still hold a very special place with us), a little more passion, and a whole lot more admiration for the biggest culture-defining brands we partner with—across categories, communities, and fandoms. 
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The Vibe

In updating EQL’s brand, we wanted to show the joy that comes from these passionate communities we now support. 

There’s something captivating about going deep into the worlds of our fans. Everyone is trying to get access to a product for a different reason, but everyone shares the same passion and energy. Everyone’s part of the same group celebrating success, commiserating losses or just sharing their love for that product they want. Figurines, cards, coins, sneakers, or anything wonderfully unique, the communities get around it. And they look to EQL for a fair shot to call it theirs.

We wanted to harness that through color, photography, font, and illustration. We also wanted to take a backseat to better showcase the brands and products we work with— the true heroes in our story. 
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The Vision

Of course, design is just one piece of the puzzle, the way we think about and talk about EQL has also evolved.

Previously, we centered our brand on hype: the anticipation of launch or the energy around a new product. However, hype can be fleeting, or even manufactured at times. We discovered that what we are truly enabling is passion. 

Passion is what motivates fans to shoot their shot at getting some of the world’s most in-demand products, rather than easily getting something off-the-shelf. Passion is what we help to fuel each time a loyal fan gets their hands on the product they’ve longed for. Passion is what drives you and me to go into that little frenzy and go after a product at nearly all costs. 

That passion is where EQL lives today, and where we’ll continue to live for the future, too. 

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