Paulina Alvarado Serrano is a senior strategist and former Div. I rower living and working in New York City.
Her fascination with brands began at the age of seven when her older brother got his first skateboard. An onslaught of logos bombarded her seemingly overnight. The pinnacle of cool had been realized and she wanted in.
So with scissors and construction paper, she recreated the Hurley and Volcom logos and taped them to her bedroom wall—proper evidence that she belonged.
It would take 20 years for her to realize that the feeling of fulfillment came from mere association with skate culture. It would be her very first encounter with branding.
Today, Paulina leads Research and Strategy at Champions. Through rigorous qualitative methodologies, strategic stakeholder engagements, and an acute sensitivity to the ways people do—or don’t—connect with ideas, she guides brands like Carnegie Hall, Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art, Cooper Hewitt, and Maremoto, through brand creation, complex organizational challenges, and maximizing brand value.
Paulina has her Masters in Branding from the world's first and longest running program of its kind, where she learned the rules of branding and how to break them.
Her background in art history, trend forecasting and design, informs her ability to decode patterns and read societal moods.
Paulina also rowed crew at the NCAA D1, University of Washington—a program known for its rigorous training and Olympic standards.
Outside of work, she frequently presents her thinking on culture at the SVA Masters in Branding program, where she is a Teaching Assistant.
