Tag: Visual Identity

  • Edifice

    Edifice

    Edifice delivers storage sheds, tiny homes, and small structures with character to residents in New Mexico and the Great Southwest. Over a few months, we helped them establish a brand identity that felt familiar yet differentiated them from an ever-increasing field of competitors.

    Unearthing Identity

    Without an existing brand identity in place, we set out to unearth a meaningful story that would guide the project. Practically, our goals were to develop something that felt New Mexico in-nature, communicated uniqueness but familiarity, and was easily ownable by the team. We dove in, starting with the logo.

    Edifice Logo Comps

    We designed 22 logo concepts in various styles and compositions. Initially, the team wanted to take a minimalist approach, but we quickly shifted directions after an initial round of audience feedback made it clear that the route felt too impersonal. We went back to the drawing board and spent a little more time uncovering their vision before a more contemporary concept clicked.

    Edifice Logo Stages

    The thumbprint inside the house represents Edifice’s dedication to making more than structures. It represents their focus on people over profit and communities over conversions. In short, the thumbprint represents humanity in every aspect of their work. It’s a simple, versatile element that helps a simple house illustration permeate meaning into every aspect of their brand.

    Edifice Logo

    To cap off the logo, we delivered a set of guidelines to help the team stay consistent as they fully owned this brand and took Edifice to the streets. These Visual Identity Guidelines defined various elements of the brand:

    • Primary, secondary, and tertiary logo marks
    • Primary and secondary colors
    • Heading and body fonts
    • Usage guidelines

    Creative Collateral

    In essence, while there was a significant physical brand reputation, there In this project, the logo set the stage for essential business collateral. We delivered personalized business cards and a fully-optimized email signature for each of their team members.

    Edifice Business Cards and Email Signature

    We also designed a cast-iron badge that Edifice will nail to each of the structures they build, reinforcing the personal-touch that flows through everything they do.

    Business Is Personal

    Here at Structure, we align closely with Edifice’s approach to business and relationships. It’s a very human, personal approach. Our goal is to make everything about the client and use our skills to benefit them, first and foremost.

    The relationship continues and we’re looking forward to partnering with Edifice to see their unique story unfold.


    Strategy

    Brand Strategy
    Research

    Design

    Brand Design
    Illustration
    Art Direction


  • Warrick

    Warrick

    Repositioning a 20-year leadership consultancy around the work it had grown into

    For more than 20 years, James Warrick had advised CEOs and leadership teams at companies including Nike, Intel, Merrill Lynch, and Williams Sonoma.

    His work had evolved considerably over that time.

    His brand hadn’t.

    People encountering James online often assumed he was a traditional life or executive coach. That description wasn’t technically wrong, but it no longer captured the caliber of the work, the clients he served, or the role he actually played in their lives and organizations.

    James wanted to enter the market in a new way.

    The problem was that after two decades inside the business, he was too close to it to clearly articulate what made his work different.

    That’s where we started.


    The Challenge

    Warrick didn’t need a prettier website.

    It needed clarity about what the company had become.

    The existing brand—Take Flight Coaching—was rooted in an earlier chapter of James’ career. His reputation and client work had moved far beyond it, but his positioning, language, and digital presence still told the old story.

    Before creating anything, we needed to understand:

    • How that strategy should shape the name, language, identity, and customer experience
    • Why accomplished CEOs actually hired James
    • What they experienced in the relationship that was difficult to describe
    • Which problems James was uniquely equipped to solve
    • What his company should stand for going forward

    Discovery before answers

    Rather than beginning with assumptions about what the new brand should look or sound like, I started with discovery.

    I interviewed James and five longtime clients to understand the company from both sides of the relationship.

    We explored why clients initially engaged him, what changed through the work, why they continued working with him, and what differentiated James from other coaches and advisors.

    We also worked through his beliefs, mission, vision, values, character, and ambitions for the next chapter of the business.

    Strategy Workshop: Brand Character & Personality Exploration

    A deeper pattern began to emerge.

    Clients weren’t simply hiring James to become better professional leaders.

    They relied on him for the confidence, clarity, and perspective required to make difficult decisions and move forward.

    James wasn’t merely coaching leaders.

    He had become a leader to leaders.

    “We now have a framework for how to communicate and a clear plan for leveraging our brand with new and existing clients. My brand is stronger than it’s ever been.”

    James Warrick, Principal


    Turning insight into strategy

    The discovery work became a 27-page Brand Framework that gave James and his team a shared foundation for the business.

    Warrick Brand Framework: Cover

    It included:

    • Customer insight and motivations
    • Three differentiated value propositions
    • Mission, vision, and values
    • Brand character and personality
    • Voice and messaging direction
    • Brand pyramid
    • Strategic principles for future marketing and communication

    The framework mattered because it created more than marketing language.

    It gave the team a common understanding of who they were, who they served, why the work mattered, and how to make future decisions consistently.

    Warrick Brand Framework: Value Propositions (left) & Brand Pyramid (right)

    Becoming Warrick

    The strategy also exposed a fundamental issue with the existing name.

    “Take Flight Coaching” reinforced the exact perception we were trying to move beyond.

    We developed 13 naming directions using a structured naming process and evaluated them against the company’s positioning and long-term ambitions.

    Then we discovered something hiding in plain sight:

    Warrick means “strong leader.”

    The name connected naturally to James’ own identity, the work he had spent decades doing, and the people he served.

    The decision became obvious.

    Take Flight Coaching became Warrick.

    From there, the team developed a bold typographic identity designed to preserve the simplicity and authority of the name.

    Original logo sketches (left) & Final Warrick logomark

    Turning the strategy into an experience

    The next question was how the brand should actually feel.

    One phrase from James’ work became especially important.

    At the end of a meeting, he would often ask:

    “What’s our movement?”

    It captured something central to the brand: clarity should result in forward motion.

    That idea became a creative principle for the website experience.

    Rather than simply publishing a new brochure site, we used movement and interaction throughout the experience to guide visitors deeper into the Warrick story and reinforce the feeling of progress.

    The final experience brought together:

    • Brand strategy
    • Positioning and messaging
    • Naming
    • Creative direction
    • Copywriting
    • Information architecture
    • UX strategy
    • Visual and motion design
    • Front-end and back-end development

    The website wasn’t the strategy.

    It was the expression of the strategy.


    The result

    Warrick emerged with a brand that finally reflected the work clients had already been experiencing for years.

    The project gave James:

    • A clearer articulation of his value
    • A deeper understanding of his customers
    • A differentiated market position
    • A new company name and identity
    • A shared language for his team
    • A strategic framework for future decisions
    • A digital experience capable of expressing the caliber of the work

    Most importantly, James had greater clarity and confidence about the direction of the company.

    “Simon and his team were crucial for the direction that I am now taking my company. The relationship I have with Simon is irreplaceable.”

    James Warrick, Principal


    My role

    I led the strategy and discovery process, including founder and client interviews, workshop facilitation, customer insight synthesis, value proposition development, brand positioning, naming, messaging, and content strategy.

    I then translated that strategic foundation into creative direction and worked with Structure’s design and development team to bring the new identity and digital experience to life.

    Strategy

    Brand Strategy
    Customer Research
    Positioning
    Naming
    Messaging
    UX Strategy
    Content Strategy

    Creative

    Creative Direction
    Copywriting
    Identity Direction
    Digital Experience