Brand expertise, led by experience

At Nucleus, our clients work directly with experienced brand, naming and digital specialists who combine strategic thinking with creative and technical expertise.

Our leadership team remains hands-on, from defining the challenge and developing the strategy to making the critical creative decisions and delivering the solution. The people who lead our pitches are the people who lead our projects.

With expertise spanning brand strategy, brand naming, identity, digital experience and intellectual property, we bring together disciplines that are all too often separated. Our work draws on decades of experience, a culture of continuous learning and a commitment to evidence-based thinking, infused with award-winning creativity and personal responsibility.

We believe the best results come when deep experience is combined with fresh thinking — and when the people advising a business understand how to transform brand concepts into tangible business value.

Peter Matthews

Founder & CEO

Peter Matthews founded Nucleus and has led the company for more than forty years, advising organisations on brand strategy, naming, innovation, digital business and intellectual property. His work brings together commercial thinking and creativity, helping businesses turn complex ideas into distinctive brands that meet their commercial goals.

Peter remains closely involved in client assignments, from developing brand strategies and new names to repositioning established businesses and exploring disruptive business models. His perspective extends beyond consultancy: he has championed Nucleus’ investment in its own ventures, including sQuid, a digital payments platform, Luxury Explorer, a luxury travel portal, and Third Lens®, the proprietary AI branding platform developed with parent company, Evoleus.

Over his career, Peter has advised and led complex brand and digital programmes for organisations including Aman, Apteus, Ascente, Azerai, BGTS, Certas Energy, Crédit Agricole, Dunhill, Encyclis, Embracer Group, Fugro, Joali, Renault, Rothschild, Sainsbury’s, Superdrug, The Potlatch Club and Toyota.

Peter is also a published commentator on branding, digital innovation and intellectual property, and has appeared on television and radio as a brand expert. Read some of his brand commentary and opinion-pieces.

David Gilbert

Head of Brand Consulting

David Gilbert leads brand consulting at Nucleus, bringing extensive experience in brand strategy, naming and identity across many industries and international markets. His career has encompassed assignments for businesses ranging from ambitious start-ups to multinational organisations.

David combines strategic thinking with a detailed understanding of how brands are developed and brought to life. His work focusses on brand positioning and proposition development, naming, identity design and implementation, as well as the management of complex brand programmes. He is particularly experienced in building long-term client relationships and working across financial services, energy transition and professional services.

Working closely with Peter Matthews and Jonathan Davey, David has contributed to long-running relationships and major brand assignments, including major brand projects for Crédit Agricole, NatWest and Rothschild across wealth management, retail banking and investment banking.

He has led or co-led brand and naming projects for AIG, Apteus, Ascente, Azqore, BGTS, Certas Energy, Coronation Capital, Coronation Merchant Bank, Encyclis, Finalto, Ooni, Superdrug, Taj Bank and UPC.

Before joining Nucleus, David was a design director at Landor and an associate design director at Lloyd Northover. He holds a BA (Hons) from Kingston University and the University of the Arts London.

Jonathan Davey

Head of Digital

Jonathan Davey leads Nucleus’ digital team, combining more than twenty years of experience at the company with expertise in digital strategy, user experience and technical delivery. He helps organisations translate business objectives and customer needs into digital experiences that work harder for both users and the business.

Jonathan’s approach starts with understanding the people a business needs to reach, their motivations and what it wants them to do. From there, he shapes digital strategies and experiences designed to attract the right audiences, build engagement, make interactions easier and convert interest into action. His expertise spans digital strategy, information architecture, user experience (UX), search engine optimisation (SEO) and programme delivery.

Jonathan has exceptionally deep experience in financial services and travel and hospitality. He has led or co-led strategic digital assignments for organisations including: AU:RA, Ascente, Brittany Ferries, CenterParcs, Champneys, The Camping and Caravanning Club, Dunhill, Haven Holidays, HSBC, Joali, P&O Cruises, Stademos Hotels and Standard Chartered Bank.

He holds a First Class BSc (Hons) in Management from Manchester University (UMIST) and an MA in Marketing from Kingston Business School.

Brand expertise, led by experience

Peter Matthews

David Gilbert

Jonathan Davey

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