FAQ

Here are the signals I see most often: you cringe when you share your own website. Your pitch deck gets a different reaction than your actual product. You're losing deals to competitors who aren't better than you — they just look like they are. Good candidates are scrolling past your job ads. If any of that resonates, the brand has become a bottleneck. It doesn't mean you need to burn everything down — sometimes it's a strategic refresh, sometimes it's a full rebuild. That's what the discovery call is for.

Because the cost of a weak brand is invisible until it's not. You don't see the proposals that didn't convert, the senior hire who chose a competitor, or the partnership that went elsewhere because your brand didn't signal credibility. Growth masks these losses, until it doesn't. The founders who get the best return from brand work are the ones who invest while things are going well, not after they've stalled.

You can. Most founders do. And most of them end up redoing it within 18 months because a logo without strategy is just a shape. It doesn't tell anyone what you stand for, who you're for, or why you're different. The "sort the rest out later" moment is usually what brings people to me, they've already spent money on design that looked fine but didn't solve anything. I'd rather you did it once properly.

A logo is one element of a brand. A brand is the complete system, your positioning, your messaging, your visual identity, your tone of voice, and how all of those things show up at every touchpoint. Think of it this way: your logo is your face, but your brand is your entire personality. I design both, but the personality always comes first.

Probably because the last project started with design and skipped strategy. That's the most common pattern I see, someone hires a designer, gets a nice logo and some colours, but nothing changes because the underlying positioning was never addressed. My process starts with strategy. We figure out what your brand needs to say and to whom before I design anything. That's the difference between decoration and transformation.

Because at an agency, the person who sells you the project isn't the person who does the work. The creative director presents the pitch, then hands it to a mid-level designer. With me, the person in the strategy session is the same person designing your identity. No handoffs. No dilution. No communication gaps. You get 20+ years of experience applied directly to your brand, not filtered through three layers of account management.

That's actually the point. Most agencies separate these, a strategist writes a brief, a designer interprets it. Something always gets lost in translation. I do both because the strategic thinking and the creative execution should come from the same mind. It means every design decision is grounded in strategy, and the strategy is written by someone who understands what's actually possible to design. That integration is the whole value.

Founders are where I do my best work because the decision-maker is in the room. No layers of approval, no politics, no committees diluting the work. That said, I've worked with marketing directors at scale-ups and product leads at tech companies. The common thread is working directly with someone who has authority and cares about getting it right, not just getting it done.

For brand strategy, it's a focused 2–3 week sprint: we do the MAP session, I do the research and analysis, and I deliver a documented strategy. For brand identity, it's a 8–12 week using my RISE process: Research, Identify (strategy), Shape (creative direction), Execute (visual design). Every project starts with a discovery call to make sure we're right for each other, followed by a proposal with a clear scope, timeline, and fixed price.

It's my strategic discovery framework: Mission & Purpose, Audience & Positioning, Personality & Values. It's an intensive, structured workshops where I work directly with you to uncover and define the strategic foundations of your brand. We dig into what your business actually stands for, who it's really for, and how it should show up in the world. It's not a mood board exercise, it's hard, focused strategic thinking that gives you clarity you can build on.

It's my process framework for brand identity projects: Research (immersing myself in your business and market), Identify (the MAP strategy session), Shape (developing creative directions rooted in strategy), Execute (designing the final identity system). Each phase builds on the last, so nothing is guesswork. It typically takes 8–12 weeks from kickoff to final delivery.

More than you'd be with an agency, less than you'd fear. The strategy phase needs your active participation, you know your business better than anyone, and the MAP session only works if you're fully in it. During the design phases, I'll need your feedback at key decision points, but I'm not sending you daily check-ins. Expect maybe 8–10 hours of your time across a full brand identity project, concentrated in the early strategy phase.

Both. Most projects happen remotely over video call — it works brilliantly and removes geography as a barrier. I've worked with founders across the UK and internationally this way. If you're in Scotland or happy to travel, in-person sessions have a different energy that some people prefer, especially for the strategy workshop. We'll figure out what suits you best.

or brand identity, I typically present two creative directions during the Shape phase. Not ten options to vote on, two considered, strategic directions that each solve the brief differently. You choose the one that fits, and we refine from there. More options isn't better, it just creates indecision. My job is to use the strategy to narrow the field to directions I believe in, then give you a meaningful choice.

Three rounds are included in Brand Identity, one round in the standalone Brand Strategy. In practice, because the work is grounded in strategy and I present rationale for every decision, the revisions tend to be refinements rather than overhauls. Most clients only use one, but are there if we need. If a project genuinely needs more, we talk about it, I'm not going to deliver work I'm not proud of just because we've hit a revision limit.

The full brand identity includes: a brand strategy document (from the MAP session), a logo suite with responsive versions for every context, a complete visual identity system (typography, colour palette, imagery direction, graphic devices), comprehensive brand guidelines, and core collateral, typically product & packaging, business cards, social templates, and a presentation deck. Plus 30 days of post-delivery support. Every project is scoped individually, so if you need additional collateral like packaging or signage, we build that into the proposal.

Your brand positioning statement, a messaging framework with key messages and value propositions, audience definition (psychographics, not just demographics), competitive landscape analysis, brand personality and values, tone of voice principles, and strategic recommendations for visual direction. It's a comprehensive reference document that gives anyone who touches your brand, your team, freelancers, future agencies, absolute clarity on what the brand stands for and how it should behave.

I do take on web design projects, but only if we've taken on brand identity project together. I only design websites in webflow.

Yes. The 30-day support period covers immediate questions after delivery. Beyond that, many clients keep me involved on as either as a consultant or retainer, reviewing materials, designing new collateral, overseeing brand application as the business grows. My longest client relationship is four years. There's no obligation, but I'm here if you need me.

That's the whole point of the brand guidelines. They're written so that anyone, your marketing hire, a freelance designer, a social media manager, can apply the brand correctly and consistently without needing to call me. I include rules for logo usage, typography, colour, imagery, tone of voice, and common applications. If the guidelines do their job, your brand stays consistent regardless of who's executing.

Because every business is different. A single-brand identity for a service business is a different scope than a multi-brand system for a product company. "From" pricing tells you the starting point so you can decide if we're in the right ballpark before we talk. After the discovery call, you'll get a fixed quote for your specific project, no ambiguity, no surprises.

Standard terms are 50% deposit to book, 50% on completion. For larger projects, I'm open to splitting the balance into milestones, for example, deposit, midpoint, and completion. We'll agree on this in the proposal so there are no surprises. I don't offer monthly payment plans as this isn't a subscription, it's a defined project with a clear outcome.

The deposit is non-refundable as it secures your slot in my schedule and I'll have already turned down other work. If circumstances change before the project starts, I'll hold your deposit as a credit for 6 months. Once work has begun, you'll be invoiced for time completed. I outline all of this clearly in the proposal so there are no grey areas.

A comparable engagement at a mid-tier agency typically runs £15,000–£30,000+. The difference isn't that I'm cutting corners, it's that I don't carry the overhead. No account managers, no junior designers billing hours while learning on your project. You're paying for senior-level strategic thinking and design craft without the agency markup. The work is the same calibre. The business model is just more efficient.

Typically 8–12 weeks from kickoff to final delivery. The strategy phase takes about 2–3 weeks, creative direction 2 weeks, and visual design and refinement 3–4 weeks. The biggest variable is feedback speed on your side, the faster you review and respond, the tighter the timeline. I don't rush the strategy phase; it's the foundation everything else is built on.

Two to three weeks. The MAP session itself is typically a half-day, and I need about two weeks after that to complete the research, analysis, and document. It's intentionally focused, strategy shouldn't take months.

I'll include rollout recommendations as part of the delivery. The short answer: don't try to change everything at once. Start with the highest-impact touchpoints, your website, pitch deck, email signatures, social profiles, and phase the rest. Some clients do a hard launch with an announcement, others roll it out gradually. The right approach depends on your business, your audience, and how different the new brand is from the old one.

It's extremely rare when the strategy work has been done properly, because the design directions are rooted in decisions we made together. But if something isn't landing, I want to know, honestly and specifically. That's what the revision rounds are for. I'd rather have a direct conversation about what's not working than politely iterate toward something neither of us believes in. The goal is a brand you're genuinely proud of, not one you've settled for.

Absolutely. The case studies on the site show the thinking behind the work, not just the visuals. If you want to see more detail on a specific project or something closer to your industry, just ask during the discovery call and I'll walk you through relevant examples.

Over 20 years in design, 10+ of those running Braeface independently. Before going independent, I worked in-house, which means I understand the pressures of working within a business, not just for one. That in-house experience is a big part of why I focus on brand as a business tool, not just an aesthetic exercise.

No. I'm selective because the work is better when the fit is right. During the discovery call, I'm assessing fit as much as you are. If I don't think I'm the right person for your project, wrong stage, wrong scope, wrong chemistry, I'll tell you honestly and point you toward someone who might be better suited. I'd rather turn down work than do work I can't stand behind.

Book a discovery call. It's 30 minutes, no pitch, no obligation. We'll talk about where your brand is, where your business is going, and whether there's a fit. If there is, I'll follow up with a proposal. If there isn't, you'll still leave with an honest perspective on your brand, which is more than most free calls deliver.