The Re-Brand

As the studio was about to celebrate its 10 year anniversary toward the end of 2020, I began to reflect on the work we had done and the ‘brand’ we had created as Candy Black. As with age, people (and brands) grow, develop and change and with a focus on the next 10 years, I was beginning to wonder if the Candy Black name would see me through.

When I came up with the name Candy Black (on the train into work), I felt that it was unique enough and had an edge to it that could get potential clients excited about us and the work we could do for them. The name served us well over the years and we did get the odd compliment on it but to be honest I begun to feel more an more removed from the name the older I got and the more I began to to refine my inspirations and design aesthetic. As Creative Director and Lead Designer for many years, this was mostly the output of the work that is on the portfolio and hence the general aesthetic for the studio as a whole — often told, that Candy Black had a ‘house style’ of clean and minimal design.

As 2021 approached, I decided to rename and rebrand the studio. This stayed a thought in my head for the most part of the year and was often discussed with our growing team. With any profession, when you actually do the service for yourself, its often the most difficult thing to do. Though I had found a new name and brand direction for the studio, I managed to surprise the team when I had a ‘last minute’ change of mind and decided to go with a different name again (which has now stuck).

Intro DESK.

After years of working with a wide scope of clients in a range of sectors, I wanted to refine how we collaborated with businesses and founders so that both parties could get the best out of the projects we undertook. We took a step back and broke down the steps we take into a process that was clear and most beneficial for the client, us and the project. I managed to break the the process down into 3 core pillars: THINK > DESIGN > IMMERSE. Each pillar has a sub list of steps that can be left for another post, but in this, our clients have a ‘North Star’ to refer to along the way.

When looking inward to what drives the studio ‘Mission’ (our business motivator other than to make money) we want to inspire and influence our clients to practice and execute the best possible design for each project we undertake. We hope to educate each clients and in turn learn from them when creative collaborative brands, which hopefully create successful brands.