Discovery & Research
The best design work starts with the right questions.
Every project starts the same way: we listen. Before we sketch anything, we need to understand your business, your customers, and your competitive landscape. This isn't a formality. Rather, it's the foundation that makes everything else work.
What We’re Looking For
The Real Story
Not the polished version from your website, but the one your team tells when they’re excited about what they do. The one your best customers would tell a friend.
What’s Actually Different
We dig into your history, your market, your competition. We talk to your team. Sometimes we talk to your customers. We look at who’s doing it well in your space, and who’s not, and why.
Bluebeard Coffee Roasters
For Bluebeard Coffee Roasters, interviews with baristas, roasters, and regulars surfaced a phrase that became the entire brand direction: “a small batch specialty roaster operated by a ragtag group of Tacoma weirdos.” The best lines come from listening, not inventing.
How It Works
Stakeholder Interviews
Real conversations with the people who know your business best. We ask a lot of questions—some obvious, some unexpected. Kandace leads these sessions, and her background in anthropology and linguistics means she’s listening for what’s underneath the answers, not just what’s on the surface.
Competitive Analysis
We map your landscape. Who are you up against? What are they saying? Where are the gaps? This isn’t about copying what works. It’s about finding where you can stand out.
Swiss Water® Process
Swiss Water® Process had been perfecting chemical-free decaffeination for 30 years, but their brand felt clinical when their team was anything but. Through workshops, roaster questionnaires, and consumer research, we uncovered the disconnect and a new positioning that captured both their scientific precision and their obsession with craft. That discovery work shaped everything: voice guidelines, a four-tier product naming system, and a visual identity that debuted at SCA Expo.
“Our new brand expression is a source of pride to our team, and is much more representative of the passionate coffee people we are.
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What You Get
A clear picture of where you stand and where you’re headed. Depending on the project, this might include audience profiles, competitive positioning, messaging direction, or a full brand strategy document.
This becomes the reference point for everything that follows—naming, voice, identity, website, packaging. We come back to it constantly. It’s why the work that comes after actually connects.
Ready to start with the foundation?
Whether you’re launching something new or rethinking what you’ve built, the best projects begin with understanding.