TODAY, WE’RE LIVING IN THE CREATIVE AGE.

We’ve seen the Stone Age, the Iron Age, the Industrial Age and the Information Age.

An age where success is determined not by physical assets but by intellectual capital—by the ability to challenge conventional wisdom, envision never-before-seen possibilities, and bring them to life.

RVA DOWNTOWN: SHARING THE STORY The RVA Downtown initiative is not a traditional branding campaign. The goal isn’t to coin a catchy phrase or to craft clever advertising. Instead, the focus of our efforts is to recognize the groundswell of creativity and innovation that originates here and to build on this momentum by encouraging creativity in all aspects of the community.

This initiative does more than tell the stories of Richmond’s creativity, past, present and future.

To do this effectively, we developed tools to invite the community to participate in the initiative. These tools include online and offline resources to allow individuals and groups to help tell the story.

We are cultivating partnerships with leaders in the community, business, research, government, education and the arts. These partners are committed to using their resources in ways that add to the creativity and innovation that fuels our city.

as a nucleus of creative vitality that spreads well beyond the City’s borders.

The purpose of this book is to give you, creative leaders of Richmond, the resources and background you need to participate in the initiative. It’s your opportunity to contribute to the initiative and to prove Richmond’s creativity by showcasing your own.

Together we can help individuals and companies alike, from Richmond and all around the region and the country, discover the creativity and vibrancy of downtown Richmond.

Thanks for participating, VENTURE RICHMOND

Just as creativity is the fuel for individual achievement, it is also the key ingredient for a successful city.

CURRENT REPUTATIONBackward-lookingConservativeStaticHistoric

DESIRED REPUTATIONForward-lookingEclecticDynamicTimeless

CURRENT PERSONALITY PleasantComfortableInsularFollower

DESIREDPERSONALITYEngagingProactiveConnectedInnovator

IT IS RICHMOND.

IT IS I HND.

RVA DOWNTOWN: OUR HISTORYThe city where Thomas Jefferson wrote a statute guaranteeing religious freedom, Maggie Walker (a child of slavery) became the country’s first female bank president, Patrick Henry declared liberty or death, Bill “Bojangles” Robinson took dance to new heights and Arthur Ashe changed tennis forever.

A place of natural beauty where innovative ideas and products are born, like the first commercial streetcar system powered by overhead electric lines, DuPont’s® development of cellophane and Reynolds® Metals’ development of the first recyclable all-aluminum can.

Richmond has a pioneering legacy in the field of medicine and research. Did you know that MCV Hospitals opened the first Clinical Transplant Center in the country or that a collaboration between MCV Hospitals and seven other medical centers led to establishing the nation’s first computerized donor-recipient matching system for kidney transplants? Are you a fan of CSI? Did you know that the Virginia Department of Forensic Science was the first state lab to offer DNA analyses to law enforcement agencies?

Today Richmond is the home to many innovative individuals, businesses, organizations and neighborhoods. The nation’s leading graduate programs in advertising and fine arts are here. Nationally recognized bands like Lamb of God and GWAR got their start in Richmond. The Martin Agency was recognized as “2009 U.S. Agency of the Year” by Adweek and continues to expand in Downtown. UNOS, headquartered in the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park, runs the nation’s transplant system matching organs from deceased donors to those on the national waiting list. Architects, engineers and developers have transformed thousands of old buildings into chic spaces to live, work and play, making Richmond one of the largest users of historic tax credits in the country. Creative companies, such as MWV, are pioneering new products like Evotherm® Warm Mix Asphalt, which can be laid in winter as well as summer. Squirrels are playing baseball and the list of creative things happening in Richmond keeps growing.

The story of our past, our present and our future is the story of creativity in action. And that creativity is rooted in RVA Downtown.

RVA DOWNTOWN: CREATIVITY IN ACTIONRecognizing the powerful role that creativity plays in Richmond, partners from around the city have developed an initiative to recognize the groundswell of Richmond’s creativity. The birthplace of that initiative is:

DOWNTOWN

It is not only a way to promote downtown as the center for new possibilities, but also is a way to encourage participation by all citizens in a culture of creativity that touches all aspects of our community.

We invite the community to participate in the initiative and encourage Richmonders to use the online and offline tools to tell their stories—and thus, the city’s story.

Over time, we hope to inspire more creativity in every walk of life and to build recognition for Richmond as a nucleus of creative vitality that spreads well beyond the city’s borders.

We’ll renew the passion and pride of our residents, rekindle the desire of people throughout the region to explore downtown and attract businesses to one of the most surprisingly creative cities in the nation.

USE

AS THE VISUAL THAT

RVA DOWNTOWN: THE IDEAEmbrace and adapt the identity that was created organically by so many different people and use RVA as the official symbol of who we are.

IDENTITY

US AND OUR COMMUNICATIONS.

RVA Creates is a collaborative effort between Venture Richmond, the City, universities, businesses, and over 100 other stakeholders, to create a stronger identity for Richmond.

A work group of six organizations (The Martin Agency, VCU Brandcenter, West Cary Group, J H I , Elevation and The Hodges Partnership) are collaborating with Venture Richmond and the City on the development and the structure of this experiment as well as developing strategies to engage the community.

VENTURE RICHMOND CITY OF RICHMOND THE MARTIN AGENCYVCU BRANDCENTER WEST CARY GROUP ELEVATION THE HODGES PARTNERSHIP J H I

RVACREATES.COM

These tools enable Richmonders to customize RVA as a reflection of their own creativity.

RVA DOWNTOWN: CREATIVE INSPIRATION NO MATTER WHAT YOU DORVA Creates filled in tells your story of innovation, creativity, nonconformity, forward thinking, eclecticism, invention, challenging conventional wisdom or pioneering new products like Evotherm® Warm Mix Asphalt.

USE THE RVA IDENTITY GENERATOR AND MAKE YOUR OWN:

MWV CREATES

DANCES

LOOKS GOOD

DONATES LIFE

GETS COOKIN’

HAS ENERGY

JUMPS FOR IT

IN YOUR E-NEWS / AS YOUR FACEBOOK IMAGE / AS #RVACREATES WHEN TWEETING / TO CREATE AND POST A YOUTUBE VIDEO ON CREATING YOUR RVA AND THE STORY BEHIND IT / AS YOUR AVATAR / ON YOUR WEBSITE / LINK TO RVACREATES.COM / IN YOUR MARKETING MATERIALS / ON MERCHANDISE & SWAG / DECALS ON YOUR BIKES, SCOOTERS, VEHICLES, ETC. / CREATE NEW USES: TATTOOS, WINDOW SHADE, SIGNS, ON ROOFTOPS, SCULPTURES, A BAT LIGHT IN THE SKY, ETC.

APPROACH THINGS DIFFERENTLY. WHEN YOU HAVE AN IDEA, LIKE

ASK YOURSELF IF THIS CAN BE THE MOST AWESOME

IN AMERICA?

IS IT A WORLD CLASS ?

HOW YOU’VE USED IT ON RVACREATES.COM

of innovation, creativity, nonconformity, forward thinking, eclecticism, invention, reinvention or just challenging conventional wisdom. Create your own version of RVA that reflects your story or passion for Richmond.

Share your light-bulb moments and keep your finger on Richmond’s creative pulse on Facebook at facebook.com/RVAcreates and on Twitter at twitter.com/RVAcreates, and look for us on Flickr and YouTube under the same username RVAcreates.

HOW YOU’VE USED IT ON RVACREATES.COM

RVA

DO

WN

TOW

N: W

OR

K P

AGES

TELL

YO

UR

STO

RY

OF

CREA

TIVI

TY Q

uest

ionn

aire

for

com

pani

es a

nd o

rgan

izat

ions

to fi

ll ou

t:

We

at

[nam

e of

org

aniz

atio

n]

Took

this

act

ion,

[n

otew

orth

y ac

tion]

That

wen

t bey

ond

conv

enti

ons

in

[indu

stry

: law

, tra

vel,

med

icin

e, e

duca

tion,

etc

.]

Enga

ging

thes

e pe

ople

alo

ng th

e w

ay

[par

tner

s, a

udie

nces

]

Acc

ompl

ishi

ng th

ese

resu

lts

[impr

ovem

ents

, enh

ance

men

ts]

Who

sho

uld

we

cont

act f

or m

ore

info

rmat

ion?

Mai

l thi

s se

lf-a

ddre

ssed

rep

ly c

ard

to u

s or

em

ail t

he in

form

atio

n to

RVA

crea

tes@

gmai

l.com

.

200 South Third Street R

ichmond, Virginia 23219

NO

NP

RO

FIT OR

GU

.S. PO

STAGE

PAID

RIC

HM

ON

D, VA

PER

MIT N

O. 1792

PH

OTO

CR

EDITS:

Page 1: R

ichmond Folk Festival, Skip R

owland; P

age 4: Friday Cheers, courtesy of Venture R

ichmond; P

age 5: Dom

inion Riverrock, courtesy of Sports B

ackers; P

age 11: Pony P

asture Early Morning, ®

2011 Rick K

idd Photography; P

age 13: White W

ater Rafting, courtesy of Venture R

ichmond; P

age 14: Richm

ond Folk Festival, Skip R

owland; P

age 15: RVA

from 1700 Feet, ®

2011 Rick K

idd Photography; P

age 16:Richm

ond Folk Festival, courtesy of Venture Richm

ond; P

age 17: Spottswood W

. Robinson III &

Robert R

. Merhige, Jr., U

nited States Courthouse, courtesy of the U

nited States Departm

ent of General Services;

Page 19: Evotherm

® W

arm M

ix Asphalt, courtesy of M

WV; P

age 20: Dom

inion Energy Trading Floor, courtesy of Venture Richm

ond; RVA

lution, courtesy of G

reater Richm

ond Grid; U

NO

S National D

onor Mem

orial, Christopher C

unningham P

hotography; Fashion Show, courtesy of VC

U; The Lunch P

orter (aka Savor), courtesy of G

reater Richm

ond Grid; D

ominion R

iverrock, courtesy of Sports Backers; P

age 23: 2nd Street Festival, Skip Row

land