Downey Supporting the DBA

This month we printed invitations for the Design Business Association’s Design Effectiveness Awards. We’ve been supporting the DBA for two years now and feel they are an essential resource for designers looking to develop in the industry. Our medium is intrinsically connected to this world so it’s in our best interests to see designers succeed and create more business.

The invitations, designed by branding consultancy agency Good, were a lovely representation of this marriage between design and print, showing how carefully chosen stock choices and printing processes can elevate something of a high standard to that of an exceptional one. The finished pieces had an almost retro appeal with the design and choice of font, but the Fabriano card, which glistened through the solid turquoise green litho and contrasted with the copper Luxor foil, made for a more modern colour combination. Together the two styles had a real touch of quality which made for a great finish, providing the recipients with a brilliant and accurate reflection of the DBA event itself.

The Design Effectiveness Awards is a celebration of the industry and gives everyone the opportunity to share a drink and get involved in some networking. It’s also a useful chance to see which companies are leading within their specific areas whilst providing others with targets to aspire to. We went along to the event, held in London’s Tobacco Dock, and it was brilliant to be amongst so many other industry professional creatives conversing and discovering new things about their craft, all under one impressive roof.

Some of the stand out winners included brand design consultancy agency Elmwood who won 6 awards, the most notable being the gold award for Brand Identity over £100,000, for their innovative and hugely successful branding of sausage company, Heck. There was also design agency Jones Knowles Ritchie, whose beautiful packaging design for perfumers Penhaligon’s saw them win gold and Thompson Brand Partners, who won gold for their fantastic work with Keelham Farm Shop.

We’re very pleased that we were able to contribute to the DBA awards and feel the invitations we provided were a fantastic example of our capabilities as specialist printers, as well as being an example of what can be achieved from the mutually beneficial relationship between us and designer.

Friday, 13th February, 2015