Design your way

Graphic design companies exist in a very competitive industry.

It can be incredibly challenging to establish a name brand. However, there is hope.

Dozens of design firms around the world have managed to make themselves stand out in the crowd, gaining international prestige and becoming very productive.

These companies are making large marks on modern culture and employing many great graphic designers.

Some of the best graphic design companies

Landor
Hey
Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv
Bravo
Studio Fnt
Re-public
ID & B
Casa Rex
DIA
Meta Design
Firstborn
House Industries
The Office of Paul Sahre
Siegel+Gale
Hugo & Marie
Big Spaceship
The Barbarian Group

Landor

They design for the future—in ways that make sense right now. They’re strategic experts and creative explorers committed to solving complex challenges. With smart tools and global resources, they examine the implications of every brand choice, create new experiences, and open doors to opportunity.

Forty years of experience is coupled with a hungry digital drive.
From start-ups to industry icons, they evolve ideas and products into lifestyle brands

Maintaining their independence means they haven’t compromised their strive for perfection. Working across disciplines to transcend the traditional boundaries of design.

Hey is a graphic design studio based in Barcelona, Spain. They specialize in brand identity, editorial design and illustration.

Triboro is the Brooklyn-based design duo of David Heasty of Texas and Stefanie Weigler of Germany. Just because they have a small team doesn’t mean you can’t make a big splash.

Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv

Creators of many of the world’s most iconic and enduring brands, Chermayeff & Geismar & Haviv is an independent New York-based graphic design firm specializing in the development of trademarks and identity programs.

Bond brings together talent from different fields to create cross-disciplinary solutions for brands.

Their team includes graphic, spatial, and strategic designers, producers, digital developers, copywriters and artisans.

Their working model is agile and designer-driven. They have studios in Helsinki, Dubai, London and Tallinn.

After 8 years, they are still your favorite friendly neighborhood branding studio, now with marketing capabilities and so much more!

Fable specializes in concept-driven ideas through brand identity, art direction, wayfinding, editorial, packaging, publishing and digital design.

It’s no surprise they have recently won the prestigious British Design & Art Direction Award, especially given how mesmerizing their colorful, geometric and pattern based designs are!

Studio fnt is a Seoul based graphic design studio that works on prints, identities, interactive/digital media and more.

It collects fragmented and straying thoughts, and then organizes and transforms them into relevant forms.

Bedow began out of desperation. In 2004 designer Perniclaw Bedow was out of work and decided his only choice was to start his own company.

They wanted to start something different from the norm. Since 2004, Bedow has paved their own way.

Re-public has been creating cross-platform design solutions since 1999.

Their work connects many dots on the map, including Mexico, Copenhagen and China, and their trophy shelf is full of awards from Red Dot Design, the Creative Circle Awards, the German Design Awards, Kolla! and Årets Bedste Bogarbejde.

A Tokyo-based design firm, Eat Creative specializes in branding, web design, print and content creation.

With more than 10 years of experience in the Japanese marketplace, they’re no stranger to the importance of adapting to different cultural points of view, especially when introducing a Western brand.

ID&B is based in Cape Town, South Africa. Since inception in 2007 our outlook, experience and portfolio has been global and we have worked for companies in the USA, Canada, China, the UK, The Netherlands, Belgium, the Middle East and Africa.

Brandient is a mobile taskforce of multidisciplinary experts specialized in brand innovation on emerging markets and industries.

Casa Rex is a São Paulo-based, design firm that’s received accolades from all the heavy-hitters—Communication Arts, Core77, Good, HOW and many more. Headed by Gustavo Piqueira (who’s won 200+ international design awards, himself), the firm has mastered everything from typefaces and homeware to environmental projects and cutting-edge branding.

For more than 25 years, this Western Australian boutique studio has proven that size doesn’t always matter. Recipients of numerous Creativity International awards (along with quite a few more), Dessein is regularly recognized for their work in branding, print and packaging design.

DIA is all about dissolving egos to focus on business goals. They push to put aside personal interests and look at the big picture, They also specialize in flexible designs: ones with can change shape and color, and that have a lasting and positive impact on any given business.

Meta Design

MetaDesign is an international design consultancy founded by Erik Spiekermann. Uli Mayer-Johanssen and Hans Ch. Krüger in Berlin in 1979.

Its San Francisco office was established in 1992 around Bill Hill and Terry Irwin, and the company, a member of Publicis Communications, now also has branches across three continents.

Firstborn

Firstborn is a creative agency headquartered in New York. Founded in 1997, it focuses on delivering a wide range of digital services for big-fish clients such as L’Oréal, Mountain Dew, Bloomberg, Jet and Supercell.

House Industries

Founded in 1993 by Andy Cruz and Rich Roat, House Industries is a foundry and design studio based in Delaware. With one foot in physical design and one in digital, its offering centres around traditional skills in drawing, painting, and lettering.

The Office of Paul Sahre

The Office of Paul Sahre is a design consultancy based in New York City, launched in 1997 by the eponymous designer, who purposely abstains from specialisation in favour of a problem solving approach that can take any form or function. One famous example was a monster truck-style hearse built for the band They Might Be Giants.

Siegel+Gale

Great brands are simple ones. The most powerful live at the intersection of clarity and surprise. By embracing simplicity, they attract the right people and drive business results. Cutting through the clutter, they’re impossible to ignore.

Hugo & Marie

Hugo & Marie is a multi-disciplinary creative studio and artist representation firm based in Brooklyn. Founded in 2008 by Mario Hugo and Jennifer Marie Gonzalez, it says it aims to “interweaves the values of its founders and artists with the character of its clients”, which include famous names such as Stella McCartney, Lorde, Coldplay and Rihanna.

You want to see more graphic design companies? Keep scrolling.

Big Spaceship

Founded in 2000, Big Spaceship is a Brooklyn-based design studio that provides a mix of product design, brand communications and content to its clients, who include Converse, Dannon, Google, Hasbro, Nestle-Purina and Samsung.

The Barbarian Group

The Barbarian Group is an interactive design studio originally founded in Boston in 2001, but currently headquartered in New York City. Its most celebrated projects to date include the Subservient Chicken for Burger King, AnyFilms for Samsung, and the Beer Cannon for Milwaukee’s Best. Since 2009, it’s been owned by Cheil Worldwide.

Starting Your Own Graphic Design Business

If you have been working in graphic design for a number of years, you probably have a strong portfolio of work. You might have even won some awards or advanced to the most senior graphic design position in your current design firm.

It’s not unusual to feel like you want to be your own boss, choose your own projects, and make the big decisions that you can’t in the position you are at right now. Maybe the time has come to either go freelance or maybe even set up a graphic design company of your very own.

Are You Motivated Enough?

If you want to start your own graphic design studio, you need to be very motivated. Any degree of Hesitancy, indecisiveness, or any lack of commitment will end in aggravation, frustration and finally failure.

Starting a graphic design firm is the easiest part of this process. Maintaining it is the hard part. You need to keep up your initial enthusiasm and momentum as you go along and the thrill of setting out on your own wears off.

Think carefully before you make this leap. You’ll quickly find yourself juggling the demands of existing clients, cash flow, staffing problems, and trying to find new clients. It is not easy—but know that it can be very rewarding on almost every level.

Evaluate Your Graphic Design Skills

Be honest about your skills with yourself. What graphic design services can you really provide your clients? Your graphic design studio will be asked to provide a number of different services, which will determine staffing as well as the allocation of other resources.

Many graphic designers are expected to be able to create many products, including:

Logos and branding
Business cards
Website design
Design for social media
Design for animation
Stationary
Print design, such as books, brochures, and flyers
Typography design
Packaging design
Print advertisements
Restaurant Menus
Infographics

If you don’t have the skill to create these products, you need to have contacts who can. You can even sub-contract the work, though keep in mind that can get expensive.

Continue Developing Your Skills

If you do have issues creating some of the products on the list above, be sure to keep developing your skills. Even if you have no issue, you should continue refining your craft and studying new techniques, technologies, and trends!

Decide on Your Ultimate Goal

What makes your graphic design company unique? How will you measure its success? Where are you now and where do you want to go? In three years, how do you want the graphic design studio to look?

Finances are major concerns for many who are setting off on their own. Try not to poach clients from your previous employer. This will create tensions and get you a bad reputation in the design industry.

For recent graduates, you can actually find a number of government-backed schemes meant to help you establish your own business. The eligibility criteria varies, so do your research before you apply.

Identify Your Target Market

As much as you might want to provide everyone with everything they need in terms of graphic design, you can’t. Focus on a particular segment of the market. Provide the best service that can be found in the niche and you are likely to find success.

Note that, while sub-contracting commission can be profitable, liaising between clients and contractors is time-consuming and full of challenges. Try to ID and profile your ideal client. Who are they? Where are they?

What services do they need and want? What is their likely budget? These things are very important. Know your client’s expectations and aspirations so you can provide them with great service, netting yourself a repeat customer.

Ending thoughts on these graphic design companies

Graphic design companies have an almost unlimited opportunity for growth in the modern world. There are plenty of employment opportunities to be found with them—or for them, if you are looking to build up your own graphic design studio.

If you enjoyed reading this article about graphic design companies, you should read these as well:

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