very friendly with our clients and
have a collaborative approach, so
it was an informal conversation at
first,” Austin continues. “The really
interesting aspect to the project is
offering up brands, who typically
have sole commercial agendas, the
opportunity to do something that
isn’t necessarily about that: it’s just a
creative pursuit and learning.”
All of the elements have been
created with current clients, he
adds. “The key partner outside of
that is Shaftesbury of Seven Dials,
which has supported us with the
bricks and mortar space, and all of
our expert fabricators who have
brought to life our concepts.”And Made Thought have
relished the chance to show
themselves off in a physical,
personal space. “In today’s digital-
centric world, it’s relatively simple to
have a presence on social media,
but far more difficult to quantify
what the capabilities or size of
that agency might be in reality,”
Austin notes. “So, we simply
decided to take a more analogue
approach, and show up physically,
in a space that allows us to
communicate our craft, our ethos,
and the way that we work with
our clients.”
It’s been an ambitious project,
and it’s not just a one-off. “Wehope to take the project overseas
and work with some interesting
brands who are looking to get
‘tomorrow ready’ and build
meaningful products responsibly
and with purpose,” says Austin.
“Also, for us, it’s not really about
behaving like a design studio any
more. We have an interest in
working on a wider agenda and
using design as a tool to solve
problems and inspire change
outside of the typical ‘brand’ remit,
so this could be an interesting time
for us to move into new fields and
creative territories.”
For more information, visit
http://www.madethought.com.Clockwise from
top Opening
day; unpacking
the archive;
McQueens
branding by
Made Thought;
thinking deeply
about what
branding means
today; Made
Thought founders
Ben Parker and
Paul Austin.CULTURE NOVEMBER 2019
COMPUTERARTS.CREATIVEBLOQ.COM