Mix is a UK-based consultancy that specialises in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), and unconscious bias training. They work at all levels, supporting leaders of companies and big-name brands in navigating complex issues in the workplace. Mix provides practical solutions through auditing, consulting, training, and workshopping to encourage inclusive environments and positive change.
However, they faced several challenges.
With the growing DEI market and need for diverse workforces, they were competing against major consulting firms and emerging businesses. But their positioning and brand didn't necessarily reflect their leadership status in the industry.
They’d outgrown their branding. And in a world awash with consulting firms it was important that they maintained their point of difference, that their brand remained interesting and approachable. For example, their personalised care and expert guidance on DEI to every client reflects their deep passion for the cause – and sets them apart.
Ultimately, with their business expanding, they needed to clarify their purpose and update their brand. It needed to resonate with both internal and external stakeholders, establish a culture of growth, and clearly reflect their messaging and values.
In collaboration with the Mix team, we set out to achieve the following:
Create a framework that articulates their values in a clear and simple way
Build a purpose model to capture what, how, and why they do what they do – inspire change in workplaces to unlock individual potential and collective success
Design an accessible brand and visual language that reflects their personality and messaging – to action diversity and inclusion
“We’re not compliance-driven, we’re about the people”
— Stef Clifton-Sprigg, Client Director and Head of Consulting
“Disruption, in a nice, kind way”
— Hayley Barnard, Co-founder and CEO
“We make people more confident and more comfortable”
— Hafeez Olarewaju, Consultant, Trainer and Learning Designer
“Spot on. Practical and friendly”
— Hayley Barnard, Co-founder and CEO
Strategy
It was really important that we got to know the leadership behind Mix, their team, and their clients.
We needed to understand their thought processes and actions around DEI. So together we conducted interviews and workshops to really land their “why”. Why they were in the industry and the type of impact they wanted to make.
We quickly learned that each team member cares deeply about what they’re doing. They all have their own origin stories rooted in personal and secondary experiences. And a genuine passion to make a positive change.
“Whatever your issue, we've seen it elsewhere. It's fixable” – Stef Clinton-Sprigg, Client Director and Head of Consulting
This led us to their core values:
People at Mix want to see real change – they’re about practical implementation
They approach things differently – they show hard truths, in a kind way
They want to influence the influencers – starting with the leaders of companies and industry
They have a can-do attitude – when it comes to DEI, it’s all possible
Most importantly, Mix understands that by prioritizing the growth potential of each individual, companies can foster a workforce that’s not only happier but also more productive and successful.
“We do anything we can to influence the influencers” – Hayley Barnard, Co-founder and CEO
Drawing from this, we could cultivate their purpose, “Change the world of work to unlock individual potential and collective success”. And from there, land their positioning to really reflect the above sentiment – “Individual potential. Collective success”.
With this knowledge, our design team set out to build their brand visuals.
Design
Mix brand
Mix understands that changing the world starts and ends with people. We needed the brand language and logo to communicate this quickly and simply. The designs also needed to apply accessibility best practices. This meant implementing things like lowercase letters and high-contrast colours to make the brand more readable for audiences with dyslexia, low and impaired vision, or colour blindness.
Additionally, we wanted to convey Mix’s personality – their knack for being candid but kind.
To begin, we explored the letter “i” in the word Mix. The “i” represents the individual. But when tweaked it transforms. We rounded the shoulders of the “i” to create a recognisable and universal symbol – a person. Following this, we used colour as a tool for diversity. We wanted each colour to portray an individual with their own uniqueness and potential. Then, to highlight the collective, we built out the wordmark with additional “i’s”. This made the logo dynamic and representative of a greater mix of unique and diverse people.
On the other hand, the multiple “i’s” also showcase the commonalities that we as humans all share. We’re all uniquely different. We’re all human.
To communicate the idea that Mix is friendly and fun, we used the dot and stem of the “i” to inform the brand's visual assets. From creating pill shapes to house type or imagery to various patterns, colours, and the scale of the dots.
We chose Geomanist as the font for the brand because it’s a sans-serif font with humanistic touches. This makes it seem friendly and approachable and works well from a legibility perspective.
Mix sub-brand
With a successful new brand established, the team set out to create a sub-brand for Mix's learning platform – Mix Learn. Here, they focus on providing course material to help workplaces better understand diversity and inclusion.
We played with the idea of studying and circling information. From there we used the pillbox from the master brand to create the visual language. And to appeal to the target audience – top professionals like CEOs and executives – who’re seeking to enhance their understanding of DEI, we designed Mix Learn with a more serious tone.
Impact
The result is the following:
A well-received Brand Impact Model that captures their purpose and essence
A framework for consistent messaging and codifying their culture
An accessible visual language and logo that represents their personality and positioning
A sub-brand – Mix Learn – designed to amplify their DEI impact
“Spot on. Practical and friendly” - Hayley Barnard, Co-founder and CEO
Credit
Strategy: Jason Tuohy, Ross Drakes
Creative Director: Shannon Davis
Designer: Robyn Salvador
Animation: David Hillier
Project Manager: Naledi Mokele