Design Week

Design Week is a UK-focused platform that started out as a magazine dedicated to the design sector. It was launched in October 1986 by Centaur Communications. In 2007, the publication had a primary circulation of 8,074, as reported by the Audit Bureau of Circulations. By 2011, Design Week transitioned to a digital-only format.

National, Trade/B2B

English

Online/Digital

Outlet metrics

Domain Authority

Ranking

Global

#318656

United Kingdom

#42714

News and Media

#1546

Traffic sources

Monthly visitors

Articles

“Strategy is not a threat” - what strategists want designers to know

3 weeks ago | designweek.co.uk | Clare Dowdy

The relationship between strategists and designers is key to creating effective work that meets clients’ needs. But strategists can feel misunderstood, and even undervalued, in their attempts to set a project’s direction through clear and meaningful thinking. We spoke with a range of in-house and independent strategists about what they wish designers knew about their work. Is the role of strategists changing, like so many design industry roles right now? If so, how?
How to run better brainstorms (or why to scrap them)

1 month ago | designweek.co.uk | Rob Alderson

This article is part of our meetings series, looking at different types of design meetings, and how they could be improved. You can find all the articles here. When we first had the idea to focus on meetings, I wasn’t going to write about brainstorms. It felt like something that was already well-covered in countless blogs, podcasts and videos – some great, some eminently forgettable. But creative meetings – whether you call them brainstorms or not – are a key part of the industry.
How to run better meetings

1 month ago | designweek.co.uk | Rob Alderson

This article is part of our meetings series, looking at different types of design meetings, and how they could be improved. You can find all the articles here. Recognising that your meetings aren’t working is one thing. Fixing that is another. At Taxi Studio, they decided this was an area they wanted to focus on – and they are already reaping the benefits.
93FT designs “playful” new Treehouse Hotel in Manchester

1 month ago | designweek.co.uk | Clare Dowdy

93FT has created the playful interiors of Starwood Hotels’ second UK branch of its Treehouse brand. With chalk boards, patchwork quilts and tree stump furniture, the hotel leans into childhood nostalgia and creative freedom. Aimed at 25 to 45-year-olds, this Treehouse Hotel is housed in a 1970s concrete building in Manchester’s city centre. It started life as an office block, but more recently operated as a Renaissance Hotel.
Taxi Studio balances trust and play in Yoloh rebrand

1 month ago | designweek.co.uk | Rob Alderson

Taxi Studio has created a new visual and verbal identity for smart insurance platform Yoloh. The start-up, which currently offers home and car insurance, has adopted a new brand built around the idea of “dejumbling insurance” and its team credits the rebrand with a 10-fold surge in its valuation, leading to seed funding from investors across Europe, the Middle East and the US.
What is the design hill you would die on?

1 month ago | designweek.co.uk | Rob Alderson

Every designer has deeply held beliefs that shape the way they think, and the way they work. We asked a range of designers what is their absolute non-negotiable when it comes to their profession, and they provided an enjoyably eclectic set of answers. Pete Hawkins – “Print it out, mock it up”Design hills can be lonely places. And truthfully, I’ve made sacrifices, this is a service industry after all. But my “hill” is more of a range.
Show impact and don’t badmouth your old job - advice from design recruiters

1 month ago | designweek.co.uk | Rob Alderson

For many designers, the job market feels quite broken right now. Applicants seem to be up, openings seem to be down, and the hiring process is fraught with controversy, from unpaid – and sometimes extensive – design tests in interviews, to being ghosted, sometimes after multiple interviews. We spoke with three recruiters – one agency, one in-house and one independent – to find out what they wish designers knew. What is the main thing designers should understand about the job market right now?
How and why designers should turn down free pitching

1 month ago | designweek.co.uk | Rob Alderson

At a Design Business Association forum this week, leaders shared practical tips to help studios avoid free pitching. Rob Alderson reports. In his farewell letter, previous editor Tom Banks referenced the “perennial issues” which Design Week has covered time and again down the years. One stuck in his mind above all others – free pitching.
Proactive, honest and bold - what does a great client relationship look like?

2 months ago | designweek.co.uk | Clare Dowdy

Jonathan Kirk wants to talk about clients. The Up to the Light founder, and author of the What Clients Think Report – based on 680 client interviews and produced alongside the Design Business Association – believes relationships are key. In fact, he argues that the quality of client relationships, rather than the quality of thinking or creative output, is the biggest differentiator between design agencies. But what does a good client relationship really look like. We spoke with Kirk to find out.
“It stings” - designers discuss having their work replaced

2 months ago | designweek.co.uk | Clare Dowdy

Whenever a redesign gets a lot of attention, the focus of the design industry and the media is understandably on the new look – whether it’s loved or hated. But what about the design that’s been dumped? Often that work was also unveiled with much fanfare, and heralded as the way forward, a new beginning for the company. The last six months has seen a flurry of this sort of thing. Wolff Olins’ 2021 abrdn mark was rolled back as the brand brought back those much-mocked missing “e”s.