Process

Every project runs through the same five stages, whether it is a single logo or a full identity system. What changes is the depth, not the shape.

1. Discovery

A structured call plus a written brief. We cover what the business does, who it competes against, who it is trying to reach, and — most importantly — what is fixed. Existing colours, print processes, launch dates, regulatory constraints, stakeholders who have to approve. The purpose of this stage is to find the problem before anybody starts solving it.

You get: a written brief and a fixed quote. I need: an hour of your time and honest answers.

2. Research and territories

A visual audit of your category so we know what everybody else looks like and can decide deliberately what to avoid. This produces two or three written strategic territories — directions, not designs. Agreeing the destination here is what makes the rest of the project efficient.

You get: a competitor audit and written territories. I need: a decision on which territory to pursue.

3. Design

The territory becomes actual design work, always presented in context rather than as artwork floating on a white slide. A logo is shown on a sign, an app icon, a business card. A packaging design is shown on a shelf next to competitors. Design that is only ever reviewed in isolation gets approved and then disappoints in the real world.

You get: designed routes presented live, with reasoning. I need: consolidated feedback from one named decision-maker.

4. Refinement

You choose a direction and we refine it until it is right. No revision counter — counting revisions makes clients hold back honest feedback, which produces worse work. What is out of scope is switching direction entirely, because the research underneath changes.

You get: unlimited refinement within the chosen direction. I need: feedback within two working days at each round.

5. Handover

Technical build, every file format exported and named sensibly, guidelines written, copyright transferred in writing, source files handed over, and a working session with whoever will be using the system day to day.

You get: everything, organised, and owned outright. I need: final payment, and ideally a note six months later telling me what happened.

What makes projects go wrong

In nine years, almost every project that has run over schedule has done so for one of three reasons: no single named decision-maker, feedback arriving in fragments over two weeks instead of consolidated in one pass, or a constraint that existed from day one but was not mentioned until week four. None of those are design problems. All three are fixable at the first call, which is why the first call matters more than it looks.