Case studies

Always connected

Verifone, a global powerhouse in payment devices and systems, has strategically expanded to encompass e-commerce and a myriad of other payment services, bolstering their reputation for secure and innovative solutions. Collaborating with NORD ID, based in Stockholm and Copenhagen, Verifone’s refreshed identity encapsulates its leadership in the payment systems domain with a new design language, centred on interconnected modularity and visually represented by fluid dots. This modular approach is meticulously integrated into every element, from the logotype to a bespoke typeface, culminating in a striking and flexible system.

Precise, technical, but also darn witty

At first look, Standard Equipment’s range of furniture and home goods stands out for its utilitarian beauty and industrial precision. You’d expect a brand so technical to sound all business and serious, but not when newkid is the one building the brand world. “As algorithms have driven an increasing standardisation of taste and lifestyle, we saw an opportunity to flip the idea of standardisation in the company name on its head, to position Standard Equipment as the creators of ‘Tools for Non-Standard Living,’” newkid’s Co-founder & Creative Director Matthew Donne tells us. To highlight the concept, the studio threaded “moments of wit and personality into the details,” from the colour palette that brightens the identity to the snappy product copy that leans into the ‘non-standard’ side of the brand.

Building a beast of a brand

“We started working with Station Casinos early in the development process – about two years before their property, Durango Casino & Resort, opened. At that point, only the Durango name and the plot of land where the future hotel and casino would be built existed,” recalls Seth Mroczka, President & Co-founder of The New Company, about their experience of branding Durango, a sweeping casino and resort in Las Vegas. Being involved early definitely helped the team, given the nature and the scale of the project – the LA and San Francisco-based design and marketing agency did not just develop the identity and branding for the main resort and casino, but also its confetti of on-site bars and restaurants.

The ‘architects for growth’

As a brand innovation and venture-building studio, Pilot44 helps new brands, products and businesses take off while assisting existing ones to shift gears and grow. With a “battle-tested team of entrepreneurs and technologists,” they spot emerging trends and identify new growth opportunities. The company needed a revamp that would encapsulate its distinctive strength as both an expert and an innovator, and so it collaborated with BB Agency, who positioned them as the ‘Architects for Growth.’

A future-ready identity

If you’re thinking about a cheesy, carby bar snack in Canada, poutine ought to come to mind. The divine dish of french fries and cheese curds topped with gravy has been dished out hot since 1969 by Ashton, the oldest poutine chain in the country, and a Quebecer favourite. Despite serving delicious, fresh plates of poutine, the restaurant and its image were stuck in time, coupled with the challenges of stagnant sales, an ageing clientele and their inability to recruit younger generations. In 2022, two young entrepreneurs acquired the 23 branches of Ashton and set out to revamp the legacy restaurant, collaborating with Canadian branding agency LG2.

8 branded envelopes that we can’t throw in the bin

Interviews

Take five with POV Budapest

As the anticipation builds for POV Budapest, the premier Hungarian design event, we’ve been chatting with the line-up of top industry speakers to give you a sneak peek into what’s in store! Why did the debut edition of the festival catch their eye? What topics and subjects will their talks touch upon? And what Budapest attractions are on their must-see list?

or Leo Porto and Felipe Rocha over at PORTO ROCHA, the timing of the conference collides perfectly with the studio’s fifth anniversary. Quite naturally, as they edge towards the milestone, the duo have been thinking about the past years of running the studio – the challenges they’ve met and the rewards they’ve collected along the way. The conference, as they say, is a ripe opportunity to share some of their learnings from leading the studio. “It is important to us to share our journey and occupy spaces that, as Latin and queer immigrants, weren’t always open to us before,” says Rocha.

In this conversation, the two Co-founders look back at how far they’ve come since 2019, reveal why they’re excited to be a part of POV Budapest, and how they’re going to use their time on the stage to demystify the idea of a ‘design hero.’

Mockups

“It is important to us to share our journey and occupy spaces that, as Latin and queer immigrants, weren’t always open to us before.”

Felipe Rocha, PORTO ROCHA
9th August 2024

Books

Sociotype Journal Issue Two: Makeshift

From London-based creative studio Socio and their type foundry Sociotype, the Journal is a platform for thoughts on culture and society, but also happens to be a type specimen. Issue Two, titled ‘Makeshift,’ is an investigation of old things made new and new things made weird; a celebration of ingenuity and ad hoc creativity under extraordinary circumstances. It is typeset in Rework, Sociotype’s very own sans serif workhorse family.

Issue Two features twelve essays, seven image-led articles and a twenty-four page technical type specimen; digging deep into the underground world of hobby tunnelling, exploring cowpaths of desire, shotcrete-encrusted mountainscapes and the improvised landscapes of civil unrest, as well as Gorpcore upcycling, kintsugi-style vehicle repair, amateur conservation and serial art vandalism.

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