It’s said that it takes some 22 muscles to smile.
Not the smile we’re looking for.
The one that sees doors opening, problems disappearing, and business improving once we’ve presented our design work, the one that makes your clients smile in turn – requires rather more.
Why? Because before a single zygomatic* muscle even thinks of moving, there’s a whole lot of other work to do. Talking, for a start. Lots of listening, learning and understanding. That’s followed by the thinking and the frowning, the scribbling, scrunching, pacing and head-scratching that goes hand in hand with creative work.
Lots more than 22 muscles. But we’re used to it. Duchenne Design – from its size to its people to its processes – is set up ensure that every detail that we can control is working in favour of your project and its aims.
This section is all about how we work: five things
that help set us apart… starting with depth of understanding.
*cheek and eye
Undoubtedly our greatest strength, when allied to creativity, is our ability to understand our clients’ needs and markets. We’re big readers and big researchers, and we don’t (as some do) seek the answer solely in design concepts and picture books. It’s often out there in the market and the problem itself.
We don’t even start until we’re sure that we understand everything. If you can really get to the bottom of what’s required before you start, and root the creative and design work in clear objectives, then very often there’s no need for whole rounds of rethinks, redrafts and redesigns. That saves a lot of stress for everyone.
“Duchenne quickly understood AVCA’s vision and created an excellent and outstanding brand identity, website, e-newsletter and conference programme. The project was delivered on time, to tight deadlines over a three-month period. Duchenne’s creative ideas, design skills and commercial experience were an integral part of our conference success. It was a pleasure working with a professional and creative team.”
Michelle Kathryn Essomé, CEO, African Venture Capital Association (AVCA)
Duchenne Design is deliberately pint-sized. This doesn’t mean we don’t handle big projects for big names – quite the opposite, we thrive on them. Check out our examples to see work for the BBC World Service, Standard Chartered Bank, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Energizer batteries, Business in the Community (BITC), or international law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf.
But over the years we’ve found that having a tried, trusted, clear-minded, focused core is the best way to produce the best work. This core team is very senior. It gives us the know-how and sensitivity to find answers quicker. Structured like this, you the client get understanding where it counts, from the people that count. It’s just more efficient.
“Duchenne Design are a truly intelligent design agency. The result is always not only incredibly creative but also incredibly well thought out and effective. Can’t recommend them highly enough.”
Juliet Leach, Head of Brand and Publications, Business in the Community (BITC)
We’re best known for excelling in two quite different fields. On the one hand we do a lot of work with arts and culture bodies, producing beautiful coffee-table books and engaging campaigns and literature. But we also do a lot of corporate and commercial work, including both reports and digital media, especially in the banking sector.
Incongruous?
No. Useful. Very useful indeed. Because our corporate clients benefit from our more ideas-driven, aesthetic skills. And arts and culture bodies see their communications allied to real, practical commercial thinking, from which they benefit greatly. Everyone wins. Smiles all round.
“The service I got from the team on helping brand the company was excellent – it was imaginative, very responsive, delivered in a short time frame for an excellent price – I could not have asked for more and would highly recommend them.”
Andy Bartlett, CEO, Bartlett Energy Advisers
There’s no doubt that design is a people business – it has to be if you work together to achieve common objectives. The more we work together, the deeper our mutual understanding and respect. We have clients who have stayed with us for years, even after changing jobs, and nearly all of our work comes through word of mouth.
The point? That in time we’re able to apply our creativity and knowledge of your needs even outside of a particular brief. Proactively. Have you thought of doing this? What if you did that? Mighty useful, sometimes.
We’re also honest. This is one of the most valuable facets you can ask for in a client. Honest about fees – no hidden costs or overheads, for example. Honest about deadlines too, and honest about the work we do with you. Frank discussions lead to clarity lead to effectiveness, it’s that simple.
“BASCA has commissioned Duchenne Design to work on a number of design projects across its three main music award ceremonies, from full scale brand redesign including logos, printed materials and websites to designing new templates for existing printed materials.
They have always delivered to brief and budget, creating original designs that have never disappointed. The resulting work has always been to the highest standard and we have found them a pleasure to work with.”
Fran Matthews, Head of Events, BASCA
The smile is international; so are we. We’re capable of producing work in several languages, and attract a broad range of international clients. While we’re fluent in English and Spanish, we’ve also worked in Russian and Chinese, and even produced a publication in ten languages! We like our horizons as broad as the sonrisa, sourire, lächeln…
“The team at Duchenne Design created a distinctive visual identity and branding strategy for our firm. The reaction from our audience has been very positive throughout. Best of all, Duchenne Design was an absolute pleasure to work with.”
Pablo Florian, Partner, CEG Europe
Guillaume Duchenne de Boulogne is fundamental to the team, even if he’s only with us in spirit, and not in person. He was an eminent neurologist of the 19th century, and the man who discovered that the genuine smile of happiness contracts muscles in the cheeks and eyes as well as the mouth. This wonderful “Duchenne smile” was named after him.
Now Duchenne has a design consultancy to his name, too. We felt that if anything represented our clients’ response to having their creative needs met, it was this “crow’s feet smile”. We think he’d have approved. It might even have raised one of those cheeky grins of his.
Contact us
Director
Mariana Zegianini
mariana@duchennedesign.com
Duchenne Design Limited
16 Sullivan Road
London SE11 4UH
T+44 (0)20 3532 8513
The nearest tubes to us
are 5 minutes walk:
Kennington
Northern Line
Elephant & Castle
Bakerloo Line
Northern Line
Lambeth North
Bakerloo Line
Duchenne Design loves to see you smile. Most of all when you’ve come to us with a serious challenge and been presented with the answer. That’s when it counts. Deft branding and design skills, commercial knowhow, and ideas-based creativity get results. So it can be a twitch, a gentle spreader, or a full on ear-to-earer, it can be relief, wonder, or excitement – it depends on you and the project. But smile, and we’re going places together.
