Founded: 1998 Location: London (plus Zurich, San Francisco, New York) Number of staff: 64
“We’re working in a whirlwind of huge technological leaps and cultural shifts,” says John Faye, UK/EU marketing manager at Moving Brands. “In 2017, we’ve been partnering with some incredible leaders, entrepreneurs and organisations, such as IBM i. And we’ve taken time to boost learning and empower teams.”
“This year has seen Supple Studio pass a number of milestones, says creative director Jamie Ellul. “May gave us our first D&AD Pencil. In July, we moved to a beautiful, three-floor studio. And designing the products and collectibles for the Royal Mail’s David Bowie stamp issue was a dream come true.”
The scope and reach of John Morgan Studio extended further in 2017, as its titular founder began a professorship at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf. The year’s biggest highlight was the launch of Four Corners Irregulars, a new series of books about modern British visual history, while 2018 will see the studio launch a new type foundry.
Founded: 2001 Location: Manchester Number of staff: 52
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“In the last 12 months we’ve seen our brand and packaging reset for
Häagen-Dazs go live, as well as our latest packaging work for Haig Club, known as The Clubman,” says executive creative director David Palmer. “We’ve also expanded the business onto two floors and picked up a whole bunch of awards.”
Founded: 1992 Location: London (plus New York, Copenhagen, San Francisco) Number of staff: 120
“In 2017, we’re celebrating one of the best financial performances of recent years,” says founding partner and CEO of Pearlfisher, Jonathan Ford. “Highlights included rebrands of iconic tea and coffee brand Taylors of Harrogate, audio lifestyle brand B&O Play and art product brand Reeves – its first major rebrand in 250 years.”
Founded: 2009 Location: Liverpool and London Number of staff: 9
“The past year’s flown by,” says Benji Holroyd, creative director at SB Studio. “Our highlight has been the full renaming and rebrand of Innovators Hub, now affectionately known as OH. The first product of our design sprint process, all in one week. Fast, relevant, no BS and a beautiful result.”
Founded: 2008 Location: London (and Rome) Number of staff: 3
Julia is a small London studio making its first appearance on our list this year. “We’ve been working with well-regarded institutions, that’s probably increased our exposure a bit,” reasons co-founder Hugo Timm. The studio has also just opened an office in Rome and plans to do the same in Paris in 2018, the year of its 10th anniversary.
Founded: 2008 Location: London Number of staff: 10
“Demand’s been high for Magpie’s services in 2017,” says co-founder David Azurdia. “Having worked so hard to keep the quality of our work so high, it’s really nice to feel as though people value it.” And he’s optimistic about 2018, despite Brexit. “As bleak as it’s all looking, we’re creative thinkers: we adapt and survive.”
Founded: 1999 Location: London Number of staff: 25
GBH co-founder Peter Hale cites two big highlights for the agency in 2017. “Firstly launching the GBH book, Charm, Belligerence and Diversity, celebrating almost 20 years of working together,” he says. “Secondly, working with Vincross, a fanatical team of Chinese entrepreneurs and developers in Beijing on a robotics project called HEXA.
Founded: 2003 Location: London Number of staff: 18
The last 12 months have been a period of consolidation at Together, says brand planner Robin Kadrnka. “We won a number of design awards for different clients, and we were excited to maintain the variety of projects that we enjoy so much, including London’s Eat 17 store and restaurant chain.”
Rosie Hilder is Creative Bloq's Deputy Editor. After beginning her career in journalism in Argentina – where she worked as Deputy Editor of Time Out Buenos Aires – she moved back to the UK and joined Future Plc in 2016. Since then, she's worked as Operations Editor on magazines including Computer Arts, 3D World and Paint & Draw and Mac|Life. In 2018, she joined Creative Bloq, where she now assists with the daily management of the site, including growing the site's reach, getting involved in events, such as judging the Brand Impact Awards, and helping make sure our content serves the reader as best it can.
