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The Newsletter 160
Projects, jobs, mockups, books and more
Elliott Panam-Moody
February 10, 2025
Case studies
RTS Tataki goes ‘outside the box’
In Romandie, the French-speaking region of Switzerland, everyone knows Tataki. As their tagline exclaims – TATAKI EST PARTOUT (TATAKI IS EVERYWHERE). Named after a speedy method of preparing cooked fish, this popular digital media platform for 15-25-year-olds offers fresh, fast-paced content about urban life, pop culture, and fashion. What everyone may have missed is that it’s distributed by public service broadcaster Radio Télévision Suisse (RTS), the sole French national channel in Switzerland. That is, until now. Following their major revamp (in collaboration with design agency Hymn), RTS were eager to highlight Tataki as part of their broadcasting family, and the Lausanne-based design agency was the go-to choice in crafting the rebrand of the sibling company.
Eyes on the future
A hub for connection, inspiration, and all things tech innovation, TechTO is proudly the “most connected tech community” in Canada, regularly hosting events in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Their goal is to not only be a celebration of the industry but also a catalyst for collaboration and professional growth. What held it back, however, was its identity, which, according to Gev Design’s Design Director Nick Bujnak, didn’t reflect the energy, ambition, or professionalism of TechTO’s events.
A nifty ‘+’
Working with some of the biggest, most daring names in the fashion and luxury worlds, Partner Films is a creative production company specialising in film and digital media. From Acne Studios and Alexander McQueen to Loewe and Louis Vuitton, they help to conceptualise and produce powerful imagery and videos (for film, TV, and social media) that capture the essence of each brand.
A lesson in worldbuilding
When developing the identity for the bar CLOSED, everything began with worldbuilding. From the get-go, it was important to preserve the heritage of the area the bar sits in. CLOSED occupies an old steelworks at the meeting point of the coast, a river, and a creek. For the Founder of how by why studio Mark Blackler, who was entrusted with crafting the identity, this setting was ripe for inspiration. When he looked closely at the bar’s backdrop, its historical and geographical elements inspired the idea of a ‘Smuggler’s House.’
A lyrical editorial platform
Writer and editor Kristin Müller created Aaino as a home for all the things she wanted to share with the world. Aaino is filled with stories of objects made by notable people, snippets of remarkable places, and personal tales from Müller’s life. Each piece of content that finds a home on the website is carefully curated to inspire, amuse and connect. At the end of the day, Aaino is a dynamic and flexible brand that lives and grows alongside its community and content.
When Aaino was just a concept, Müller reached out to W—E studio to define the brand’s DNA and identity. The studio developed the elegant branding, with a sharp, stylish wordmark – along with the logo of an ‘A’ with a dot atop it – and also shaped the look and feel of the website, passing the baton to Decimal to build the editorial platform.
A visual diary of Hong Kong in transition
In 2019, Hong Kong witnessed extraordinary protests and social unrest as millions of citizens fiercely opposed a proposed extradition bill that threatened to allow the extradition of criminal suspects to mainland China. In a bid to regain control, the government implemented the national security law, which criminalised acts of secession, subversion, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces. The aggressive enforcement resulted in widespread arrests and the dismantling of numerous pro-democracy organisations. This political climate had such a profound impact that it triggered a mass exodus, particularly among young Hong Kong residents who began seeking opportunities in countries offering greater political freedoms.
“During this depressing time,” explains Los Angeles-based visual designer Xiyu Deng, “musicians there began writing more songs to comfort the citizens and document the city’s challenges.
Interview
Motto®
With a focused approach to its core strengths and a clear vision for the future, global strategic branding agency Motto® is continually elevating its game in brand strategy and leadership alignment, and, following a busy 2024, Co-founder & CEO Sunny Bonnell provides an update on what the team and their clients have achieved. The agency’s portfolio of notable successes has kept growing through the past year. Their commitment to innovation and strategic thinking is already yielding impressive results in the early months of 2025, and Bonnell eagerly shares all, including insights into how the agency’s focused approach and commitment to visionary leadership is shaping their trajectory for the year ahead.
newkid
newkid always has something going on. The studio, which recently turned four, has been up to one thing after the other. Through the past few years, the team has been building a body of work that speaks of a maturity far beyond their years. By bringing their innate curiosity to each project, they’ve been helping brands find their voice and place in the world.
After being in “‘stealth mode’ for the first few years,” as Co-founder Alex Avendaño puts it, the studio was ready to shine a bit more light on their creative chops, and so, to ring in their birthday, they launched a new website. And they didn’t just stop there – the celebrations continue with a collaboration with Standard Equipment (whom the studio built an identity and website for) debuting an exclusive range of products. As we chat with Co-founders Alex Avendaño, Matthew Donne and Rich Brown, they give us a sneak peek of the collection, and recount their days as a ‘newkid,’ sharing why they still bring that fresh-eyed energy to everything they do.
Mockups
Jobs
Books
The Process – Digital Edition
The Process showcases the unused and unseen ideas, concepts, mockups and sketches that were created during the branding process. The book contains projects by Bienal, Collins, DesignStudio, DIA, Franklyn, Hype Type Studio, Passport, POST—, Public-Library, SocioDesign, Vertigo and Yuta Takahashi. This is a digital downloadable file in both EPUB and PDF formats.
Useful links
