Grégory Brand & B-DESIGN... A Story in the Making!

Between Drawing and Karting

From an early age, Grégory Brand was always drawing: on paper tablecloths in restaurants, on the walls of his bedroom, and at school, where his drawings were already beginning to attract attention.
At the age of 12, his father introduced him to karting. Weekends at the circuits, travelling across France, racing and paddock life soon became an important part of his world. Very quickly, beyond the track itself, he became fascinated by racing helmets, particularly those worn by certain Italian drivers, often highly detailed and remarkably colourful for the time. Without knowing it yet, something was already beginning to take shape…

The Turning Point

For his first victory, his father had promised him a real racing helmet. He gave him a white Bell M3, the same model worn by Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. Grégory raced with it for half a season before deciding to have it painted for the start of the 1994 season, his second year in the cadet category.
A fellow driver recommended an artist who was said to be talented. A design was prepared and the project went ahead, but when the helmet came back, the disappointment was immediate: the paintwork was very poor. A few races later, it was entrusted to a second painter, this time chosen with greater care. In between, Grégory reworked his design and pushed his original idea even further.
This period became a real turning point. His fascination with helmets continued to grow, to the point that after leaving secondary school, he began taking airbrush courses with one goal already in mind: learning how to paint racing helmets.

The First Helmets: Learning by Doing

After completing his first year of airbrush classes, Grégory considered continuing his studies at an art school. His teacher encouraged him instead to start working and learn through experience. Shortly afterwards, he began painting helmets for friends who raced. His first projects were completed at his parents’ home, between his bedroom and the kitchen, without a dedicated workshop. Very quickly, each helmet became a space for experimentation, learning and progress. At the time, there were no social networks, no behind-the-scenes videos and none of the visual resources available today for studying techniques and finished work. He had to search, experiment, start again and teach himself. The desire to do things properly was already there, along with the ambition to turn it into a profession. It was during this period that the first helmets were signed under the name Brand Design, before B-Design naturally became the name that remained.

The Birth of B-Design

By the end of the 1990s, Grégory’s activity was beginning to take on a new dimension. Still living with his parents, he transformed part of the family home into a genuine workshop, complete with a paint booth and designed almost like a laboratory.
At the same time, he began promoting his work during race weekends in which he was competing himself. In the paddocks, he would spot drivers whose helmets were still plain and tell them about his work. It was not unusual for him to return from a race weekend with one or several new commissions.
This is how B-Design was built: out in the field, through hard work, word of mouth, and the first flyers slipped under the windscreen wipers of cars parked in paddocks, followed by trade shows, classified ads in karting magazines and, later, full advertising campaigns in those same publications.
From very early on, Grégory understood that a name, an image and a strong identity mattered just as much as the work itself.

Growing Recognition

In 2002, KartMag magazine published a feature on the profession of helmet painting and presented Grégory as one of the leading French names in the field. A few years later, his selection among the world’s leading international designers for the Red Bull Helmet Art event in Indianapolis further confirmed this recognition.
As the business continued to grow, B-Design entered a new phase. Grégory began creating helmets for Formula 1 drivers, gradually built a team around him, and saw numerous drivers entrust him with the evolution of their helmet designs year after year throughout their careers.
For several years, Grégory also operated a genuine race service at circuits, combining the sale of driver equipment with helmet displays. It was another way of affirming the position B-Design had established within the world of motorsport.

Grégory Brand Today

Today, Grégory continues to pursue with even greater conviction the vision that has always driven him: to transform the helmet into a work of art, an exceptional object designed to be presented as such. More than simply an accessory within motorsport, he sees it as a creation in its own right, defined by the highest standards, exclusivity and a strong sense of beauty.
This philosophy remains part of a continuous journey, but with the constant ambition to go further. Since 2025, his new premises have fully embodied this approach. Designed as a setting in which each helmet can be showcased, they give every creation the place it deserves. More than ever, Grégory chooses to work in an environment that inspires him, reflects who he is, and allows him to create exceptional pieces for drivers who share this vision.

For nearly 30 years, Grégory Brand has brought his artistic eye, attention to detail and uncompromising standards to the creation of unique pieces. Through B-Design, he has shaped far more than a craft: he has created a distinctive signature recognised throughout the world of motorsport.