EMBER IGNITE: What Ruby’s Wine Shop Teaches Us About Building an Authentic Brand

Some brands are born in strategy documents. Others are born in lived experience — in the hands of a founder who is building something they wish existed. Ruby’s Wine Shop belongs to the second category.

For our first Ember Ignite episode, we visited Tamara at Ruby’s Wine Shop in Albion to talk about what authentic branding really looks like for a brand-new business - and the process of building an authentic brand. What we found was a perfect case study in clarity, courage and creative instinct — qualities every business owner needs, especially in the early days. The result is a brand that leads with authenticity.

This blog breaks down the key ideas from that conversation and turns them into practical guidance you can use in your own brand-building journey.

Click over to watch the reel:

1. Great brands start with a feeling — not a logo

When I asked Tamara what she wanted people to feel when they walked into Ruby’s, she didn’t list aesthetic trends or brand colours — she described an emotion.

Warmth. Connection. Being welcomed into a space that feels lived-in, not staged or artificial.

Most business owners skip this step, but this is truly the foundation of authentic branding. When you know the feeling, every design decision becomes easier. The brand’s purpose becomes obvious The visual direction becomes clearer, and the customer experience becomes crystal-clear.

Here, branding stops being decoration and becomes authentic.

2. Your brand is a personality — so get specific when you're building an authentic brand

A strong brand behaves like a person: it has preferences, quirks, a tone of voice, a way of showing up. When I asked Tamara to describe her brand’s personality, she gave a precise and heartfelt answer — warm, grounded, creative, approachable and comfortable. Most small business owners never articulate this, and the result is a brand that changes depending on the day, the post, or their latest inspiration. But your brand becomes easier to manage when you know who it is. Once the personality is clear, consistency becomes natural.

3. Brand clarity happens in motion, not in planning

Tamara shared several “wins” that happened while she was building Ruby’s — ideas, resources and support that clicked in the moment. Details that felt right, spontaneous decisions and creative inspiration that brought the space to life.

This is so important. Brands rarely reveal themselves in advance. They reveal themselves as you build.

Most small business owners think branding should be finalised before the doors open. In reality, the first version of your brand is just a starting point. It's important and it is essential to build a few key brand assets (such as a logo), but expect the true brand to develop and evolve.

The true identity emerges through:

• real customers

• real decisions

• real constraints

• real creativity

  
  

The goal is not to get the brand “right” on day one — it’s to stay aligned while you evolve it.

4. The challenges shape your brand identity as much as the wins

Tamara also talked about the difficult parts — challenges in logistics, decision fatigue, pressure to create something meaningful and get everything done in time. Every founder knows this stage. It’s where you discover what you’re made of.

Here’s the shift: Challenges aren’t interruptions to your branding journey — they are part of the brand story. Your resilience and determination becomes part of the identity. Your problem-solving becomes part of the character. Your choices during the imperfect moments become the voice of the brand.

5. Authentic branding is built from the inside out

Let's be honest: there are two kinds of brands.

1) Outside-in brands: Built from trends, templates, aesthetics, comparison.

2) Inside-out brands: Built from purpose, story, feeling, lived experience.

Ruby’s Wine Shop is the second type — and that’s what makes it strong. Authentic branding isn’t about looking polished. It’s about being true. It’s about making decisions that reflect the founder’s values, not the market’s noise.

When your brand comes from the inside out:

• it resonates more deeply

• it differentiates naturally

• and it attracts the right people without forcing it

  
  

This is the part brand templates can never replicate.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT (For Small Business Owners):

There are many ways to build a brand and strengthen brand identity, but if you're faced with questions about your brand, use these prompts to deepen your clarity.

Brand Clarity

1. What is the core feeling you want people to associate with your business?

2. If your brand were a person, how would you describe its personality in three words?

Experience

3. What’s one moment you want every customer to remember from their interaction with you?

4. What story does your physical or digital space currently tell?

Authenticity

5. Which parts of your brand feel true to you?

6. Which parts feel forced, copied, or overly influenced by trends?

Founder Alignment

7. What decisions am I avoiding because I’m afraid of “getting it wrong”?

8. What part of my own lived experience belongs inside this brand?

Action

9. What is one practical brand detail I can refine this week?

10. What do I want my brand to become over the next 12 months?

Authentic branding isn’t a design choice — it’s a leadership choice. Ruby’s Wine Shop is a brilliant example of a founder building a brand from instinct, emotion and lived experience. And that’s what makes it powerful.

When your brand reflects who you are, people respond. When your story shows up in the details, your brand becomes memorable. When you build from the inside out, the identity becomes undeniable.

This is exactly what Ember Ignite exists to spotlight: real founders, real stories, real moments of clarity. And Ruby’s set the bar beautifully. If you're local to Brisbane and interested in a feature for your business, please send us an email.