The Audacious Require a Rebel

Each year, Rebel selects a word for the coming year. During our planning season, we start the process of thinking about what the next year needs to accomplish and how we want to show up for that 12 months.

The word reflects where we’re starting from and where we’re headed, becoming a mini-mission statement for the next 12 months—a reminder of what we’re building towards.

The tradition started the first year Rebel was a thing—back when Rebel was just me. At first, it started as just a card with a simple word. Then, it grew to be a brand experience—a chosen word, a designed box, and curated products. Now, it’s a critical part of being engaged with Rebel.

We use the word internally—it’s reflective of our company goals. Our company goals are mapped to our employees' individual goals. Individual employee goals are directed toward building out an exceptional client and employee experience. And together, it works to move the needle forward.

The work to identify the word of the year is anything but superficial. The exploration starts the year before. We track performance metrics for our current year goals, we pay attention to the hurdles we’re facing, and we start to define what we want for the year ahead.

For 2023, our word is Audacious.

Audacious gets a bad wrap, doesn’t it? It’s shocking, surprising, and somewhat—irreverent. But, look closer, and you’ll see that it’s the audacious that challenge the status quo. The audacious that dare to look at the way we’ve always done it and demand more, demand better. This word inspires the forward motion of creating the new.

For Rebel, the word gives a nod to who we are and what we bring to the market. This year, we’re leaning even further into our roots and favoring bold growth.

For our partners, the word is a reminder that the status quo will not move the needle forward. The seemingly impossible, the complex, and uncharted require a willingness to be bold.

The first is a collaboration with Story Plate, a celebration of women chefs across the country. We created a cookbook that tells their stories, shares their recipes, and the purchase of each of the recipes in each book gives back to the charitable cause of the chef’s choosing.

The second is a collaboration with Patriot Coffee, a coffee roasting company that got its start in a local farmers market rethinking the art of the brew.

Reaching new audiences, scaling to uncharted territories, launching new ideas, and creating a better way forward require the audacious.

And the audacious, require a Rebel.

We’re ready for 2023.

Are you?