We recently caught up with creative director and studio founder Laura Jane Boast (formerly LJB Studio) and the woman behind platform Design Giving on her decision to re-brand and found her new studio Conscious Made.
Why have you decided to rename and rebrand your studio?
Back in 2014, I launched my business, formerly known as LJB Studio. After five years of growth, I encountered the difficulty of my brand no longer aligning with what my business had become. There was a significant gap between brand vision and brand visuals, no longer attracting the ideal client and failing to represent my personality, experience and caliber of work. More so, the acronym name only added to the brand confusion — all of which limited potential reach. The moment in which I realised this was in January 2019, when I was invited to host a panel discussion on ‘The Rise of the Purpose-led Brand’ for TopDrawer, a design-led trade show located at Olympia, London. I was there not to represent LJB Studio, but the magazine I founded six months prior called Design Giving. My aim was to tell the story of how Design Giving began, what a purpose-led brand meant to me, why it’s important and share my knowledge on how other brands can become more purpose-led. The panel discussion was a great success, and I left feeling proud as I continued to enjoy the rest of the show. It wasn’t until a week later, I suddenly experienced an immense feeling of failure. Whilst the TopDrawer event was incredible for opening my eyes to the fact that building a purpose-led brand, like Design Giving, with strong ethical values, a clear mission and vision, gave me drive, direction and a sense of identity, it also made me more conscious aware of how my studio was failing to achieve the same. Even though I had such strong sustainable values and passion for my work, I had lost sight of my purpose, my identity and had no clear direction. This left me feeling lost, disorientated and lacked any sense of connection. Growing a business with lack of direction leads no-where. And without a real sense of identity or purpose, meant I lost motivation and drive. It was at this point I knew I needed to rename and rebrand my studio, however the answers to those questions were very much unknown. But what I did have was determination to recreate a sense of belonging and gain a greater feeling of clarity and purpose.
“Growing a business with lack of direction leads no-where. And without a real sense of identity or purpose, meant I lost motivation and drive. It was at this point I knew I needed to rename and rebrand my studio, however the answers to those questions were very much unknown. But what I did have was determination to recreate a sense of belonging and gain a greater feeling of clarity and purpose.”
What is the ethos behind your new studio Conscious Made?
The ethos behind Conscious Made is all about inviting people to experience enriched wellbeing. At the heart of the brand is a vision to create meaningful brand experiences that foster a sense of belonging and improve people’s wellbeing. Which all starts with a clear understanding of what design means to me. That it is more than just aesthetic. At its best, design is a space for self-expression that appeals to people’s emotions and engages all the senses. It creates order from chaos. Allows us to understand ourselves and show our identity. It does more than sit pretty, it inspires, informs and connects. And most importantly of all, it has the power to make brand experiences more meaningful, memorable and compelling. The studio name, Conscious Made, is derived from the compression of the phrase: ‘Where conscious thoughts, feelings and sensory experiences are made’. A conceptual definition of my science-informed wellbeing design process, that combines: insightful thinking (I), human-centred emotional design (II) and multisensory brand experiences (III) — designed to feed the mind, warm the heart and please the senses.
“The ethos behind Conscious Made is all about inviting people to experience enriched wellbeing. At the heart of the brand is a vision to create meaningful brand experiences that foster a sense of belonging and improve people’s wellbeing.”
Can you tell us a bit about the process you went through to create your new visual identity and where you found inspiration?
To begin the rebranding process, I initially spent the first few months building a brand strategy. Laying out the foundations of the brand purpose, mission and vision, along with the brand positioning and personality. Design for me always starts with words. If I can capture an idea or concept in a sentence, that sums up the overall vision of the brand, it gives me a very clear direction, and something solid that I can refer back to in the development stages when I tend to veer off on on different tangents of experimentation. After I had a clear strategy in place, I was then able to make better informed decisions around typography, colour, illustration and photography. The three biggest influences on my work and where I find most of my inspiration, comes from science, nature and the use of grids — combining lines, forms, natural materials, natural colours and textures, with the organisation of information. For the identity itself, I took inspiration from my past typographic work, which originated from a very straight, linear type design style, to a more high-contrasting and more unique letter forms — whilst balancing with creating something highly legible. At the final stages I’m always led by emotion. How does the design make me feel? Happy, reenergised, curious, optimistic, inspired…? This often takes place over a few days, making the final iterations, using the identity at varying sizes, in multiple colour options, for different uses — making sure it’s fit for purpose.
“Design for me always starts with words. If I can capture an idea or concept in a sentence, that sums up the overall vision of the brand, it gives me a very clear direction, and something solid that I can refer back to in the development stages when I tend to veer off on on different tangents of experimentation.”
Were there any challenges and how did you overcome them?
Yes, plenty : ) When running a solo business, it comes with its own challenges, one being able to recognise small changes that happen daily, over a long period of time, whilst being acutely aware if they are right or wrong for your business. The initial problem I faced was the lack of awareness that my brand was no longer representing my business correctly. Not only through an outdated image that failed to reflect my personality and values, but also lacking to showcase my depth of knowledge, experience and breadth of services. To overcome this I carried out a brand audit, which I more commonly use with clients. Evaluating everything from brand values, core services, vision, audience, brand voice, positioning and branding, as it stood as LJB Studio. I also drew up a timeline, picking out key milestones, highlighting both failures and successes, which proved to be a very helpful exercise. The second challenge then came in the shape of recognising exactly what was out of alignment and why I no longer felt a sense of connection. Over the next couple of months I devised a brand strategy in line with my business today — most of which was undertaken on a solitary basis, through a lot of self-reflection — and a sense of belonging was felt almost instantaneously. The third and probably the most challenging aspect of all, was designing for myself. Being able to articulate the visual brand, what it looked like, what it sounded like and what it felt like, in line with the new strategy. But despite all the late nights and painstaking long hours perfecting every detail to get the brand where it is today, I can honestly say every second and every challenge was worth it to be able to feel a sense of identity and connection with my brand again. No longer trying to fit into what’s expected, but belonging to what feels right. But the most rewarding part of it all has been the connections I’ve made with people since announcing my rebrand, and the conversations it’s started. If my story can help at least one other person foster a sense of belonging too, then I will feel like I’ve achieved what I set out to do.
“…I can honestly say every second and every challenge was worth it to be able to feel a sense of identity and connection with my brand again. No longer trying to fit into what’s expected, but belonging to what feels right.”
Any advice for women considering founding their own studio?
If you’re anything like me, and know at the back of your mind, that ‘one day’ you will run your own studio, then ask yourself, if not now, then when? Often the idea of running your own business feels like you need to be someone ultra confident, ultra fearless and have all the experience you will ever need. When in reality, you gain more confidence, more fearlessness and more experience in the process of setting up. Back in 2014, if you asked me if was I ‘ready’ I would have said no, but that’s all part of my journey, my story, and what makes me running a studio completely unique to anyone else. It’s our failures as much as our successes that shape us. And it’s that uniqueness that will set you apart too. There’s no right or wrong way. Follow your gut! If it feels right, just do it. The best feelings come from those unexpected moments of uncertainty and taking risks.
“There’s no right or wrong way. Follow your gut! If it feels right, just do it. The best feelings come from those unexpected moments of uncertainty and taking risks.”
To find out more about Conscious Made, visit:
Contact:
- Email Laura: laura@consciousmade.co.uk
- Mobile for Laura: 07719 22 15 22
Follow:
- Instagram @conscious.made – @DesignGiving – @LauraBoast
- Twitter @conscious_made