Solodesign: professional design for print and beyond

As the creative design service from Solopress, Solodesign helps customers develop their ideas into effective visual communications, from individual pieces of artwork to complete collections of branded materials.

When businesses look and sound alike, it’s harder for customers to tell one from another. If you’ve got something special to offer, that should come through in every touchpoint your audience encounters. Bespoke creative, informed by your brief and developed by experienced designers, can give your brand the character and distinction people need to recognise, remember and choose you.

Our team covers graphic design, copywriting and strategic branding. And while you’d expect us to know our way around print-ready artwork, we’re just as comfortable creating digital content for websites, online campaigns and display screens.

Every brief is different, so we thought we’d share some of the projects we’ve worked on, the challenges behind them and what our customers have to say about the experience.

Understanding what matters to your organisation

A successful design project begins with understanding what the customer wants to communicate and how. That can mean faithful adherence to existing brand guidelines, developing an established identity or exploring a new creative direction altogether.

Pentru National Online Wellbeing Services (N.O.W.S), the challenge was to refresh a collection of journals and supporting materials to reflect the organisation’s welcoming, approachable character.

Working closely with the client, Solodesign’s Ellise Collins developed a series of journal designs that appealed to different age groups while maintaining a consistent identity. The resulting artwork combined warmth and accessibility with a clear visual structure.

“The way she understood and translated our vision into the stunning design of our new working journals is nothing short of incredible.”

Kelly and Tash, N.O.W.S

Working with familiar characters and stories

Creating original design around an established creative property calls for a particular balance. Audiences have existing associations with the characters and imagery, so new material needs to feel at home in that familiar world while serving its own purpose.

Solodesign has worked with Carrot Productions on the design and print of souvenir programmes for its live performances, including Omul de zăpadă cu orchestră live.

Based on the animated adaptation of Raymond Briggs’ much-loved children’s book, the production combines a screening of the film with a live orchestral performance. Creative Lead Richard Kemp worked on a programme that brought together content associated with different productions, alongside an eight-page activity booklet.

The challenge was to accommodate the various elements within a cohesive publication that respected the character of the original work.

“The whole experience was great, from chatting over the initial brief right through to the final design. The communication throughout was fantastic.”

Claire Surman, General Manager, Carrot Productions

Creative thinking within established brands

Our work with Carrot Productions also led to Solodesign’s involvement in the programme for its Aardman 50th anniversary concert.

Original design doesn’t always mean starting from scratch. Many of our customers have established visual identities, existing assets and guidelines that need to be respected. When a brand is as well-known and beloved as Aardman, its guardians are quite rightly protective of how each asset is deployed.

Working directly with Aardman on the development and approval of the artwork, Richard had to balance the studio’s playful, unmistakable character with its established branding and intellectual property requirements.

Bespoke layouts, character-led imagery and expressive typography helped bring the publication together while preserving the identity audiences already knew.

“Richard was great to work with and really understood how to work with our IP and apply the assets effectively”

Molly Van Den Brink, Senior Attractions & Live Experiences Manager, Aardman

From specialist print to digital displays

Different formats bring different design challenges. From the physical requirements of packaging to the demands of digital displays, effective creative work needs to consider how and where it will be seen.

Pentru POD, a range of high-quality Indian ready meals created by Masterchef finalist Anurag Aggrawal, Senior Designer Ellise Collins developed a collection of branded materials spanning food packaging, cărți de vizită și broșuri. Some of the packaging required specialist production knowledge, with artwork carefully prepared to accommodate its particular construction. The challenge was to maintain a coherent visual identity across products with very different practical requirements.

Our work with London Southend Airport demonstrates a different side of Solodesign’s capabilities, with much of the creative destined for digital display screens.

For the airport’s Winter’s a Beach campaign, contrasting seasonal imagery and bold typography communicated the appeal of escaping the British winter. The work included static and animated digital content, where composition, movement and clarity all played a part in communicating the message.

Whether we’re preparing artwork for specialist print production or creating content for digital displays, the aim is the same: to make the most of each medium while keeping the brand recognisable and the message clear.

What our customers say

The finished artwork is only one part of a design project. Understanding the brief, contributing ideas and responding to feedback all shape the experience of working together.

Here’s what some of our customers have said about working with Solodesign on Trustpilot:

“The designer did a fantastic job on my flyer, way better than the AI mock-up I sent them thinking (wrongly!) that all they needed to do was recreate what ChatGPT had done. Fantastic design, so glad I got the Solopress designer involved.”
Dr Kathleen Seymour, Student Voice Plus

“We supplied our brand guidelines, brand assets and a very basic brief, and the team turned it around. The design was spot on, and Emma even went the extra mile by reviewing our previous creative without being asked.”
Aspire Housing

“Richard designed a two sided leaflet for us. I gave Richard our brief, copy text and feel etc. I was amazed, he nailed it first time and was a pleasure to deal with.”
Gloucester Road Gearboxes Ltd

“Their service is consistently professional, and Ellise always comes through for us, even when we’re nightmare customers and leave everything to the last minute. The turnaround is incredibly quick and the quality of both the design work and the printing is fantastic.”
Universal Yachting

Let’s bring your ideas to life

Every project begins somewhere different. You might have a detailed brief and established brand guidelines, an existing design that needs updating or an idea that’s ready to take shape.

Whatever you have in mind, we’d welcome the opportunity to discuss it.

Book a free consultation with our creative team to discuss your requirements and explore how Solodesign can help.

Start your project today