With quick links to London, sandy beaches on your doorstep and easy access to the South Downs National Park, it's no wonder it's hard to find a home on the South Coast.
So when an opportunity arises to extend, build afresh, or acquire land, you can't afford to get it wrong. What you need is an architecture and planning studio with the experience and local know-how to guide you through the process towards your dream home.
That's the specialism of Chichester-based Smith Simmons and Partners. Coming from extensive individual careers, founders Ben and Kerry partnered to combine design and planning experience in a single studio.
In 2022, we partnered with SS&P to reimagine their brand identity and to build a website [pending] that would help convey their rich, joint experience and by-your-side approach to delivering impactful projects.
BRAND IDENTITY
During our initial Discover Session, we began with a deep dive into their industry, purpose, and vision. One of my favourite parts of every project!
Next, we tackled brand identity, designing a new logo, curating a system of colours and choosing a typeface. We drew inspiration for the logo from the commonly used SS&P acronym. Combining this with the feel of an architectural drawing, or floor plan, we developed a mark that felt both sophisticated and authentic.
We decided to stack the three words for the complimenting wordmark, hinting at construction, building or foundations.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Portfolio imagery is arguably the best way for SS&P to share the quality of their work. So, we captured high-quality imagery for key projects using a compositry blending technique that allows more detail than conventional photography—especially for images where both inside and outside are visible.
We also employed advanced sky replacement techniques to help showcase the projects in the ultimate light.
PRINT AND ENVIRONMENTAL
Digital design is the fundamental foundation for any Brand Identity, but translating that design into the physical space can be one of the most rewarding parts of the project. Executing a brand in the physical space is also the best test of an identity's robustness.
For this project, and pretty much all of our projects, we worked closely with Jot Press to create business cards, letterheads and compliment slips. We opted for a hot-stamped foiling technique instead of conventional ink printing, and the results are, well, outstanding.
We also supported them with art direction for their new offices in the heart of Chichester and the design of their wayfinding, exterior signage, and window vinyls.
WEBSITE
Designing a simple yet informative website was the final piece of the puzzle. The strategy focussed on their 'Guide' brand attribute, with the user experience being carefully considered to lead viewers through a journey of learning about the brand and browsing their services before finally reaching out to arrange a call or meeting.
We are developing the website on Webflow, which provides a robust Editor tool for the client to edit copy and imagery easily. On top of that, we are also creating case study template pages so that SSP can create new case study pages simply by adding the relevant text and imagery. All the design, layout and technical development happen automatically, meaning anyone in their team could add new Case Studies.
Also, as standard on all of our projects, we are developing the website using industry-leading SEO best practices to ensure a high ranking within Google.
The website is due in Q1 of 2023.
WRAP UP
I think every design studio dreams of working with an architecture studio at some point. Although we operate in very different fields with different rules and processes, there is a shared love of design, user experience and creating things that resonate with people.
And on that note, I hope you enjoyed reading this brand case study. If you did, then please let us know on Instagram or email us. It's nice to know that these are worth the effort of pulling together.
Until the next one!
