18 December, 2024

As we prepare to see off 2024, we're reflecting on a year of change, creativity, and exciting collaborations. 

It’s become our annual tradition to pause and ponder on the passing year. For Nixon, 2024 saw big changes as we moved studios, launched a new website, and worked on a major brand refresh (this time, for ourselves). We’ve welcomed Edoardo to our design team and said goodbye to Laura, who left us to work on her own exciting business venture. 

This was also a year of conversations and celebrations. We’ve taken the plunge at cold-water networking events with the Pig Dippers, met faces new and familiar at local meetups, and collaborated with other Cornish experts to host a half-day Deep Dive of our own. And earlier this month, we officially “warmed” our new studio and marked 30 years of Nixon with a special gathering. 

And above all this, there have been partnerships and projects with clients far and wide. We’ve launched new brands and revisited the centuries-old, written tens of thousands of words in copy, and worked on landmark pieces of print. Here are just a handful of highlights from the year…

Trewithen

As one of the major projects of 2024 (and 2023), rebranding Trewithen saw our whole team come together. But a refreshed brand strategy, values, tone of voice and visual identity became only half the story – with these elements in place, we then embarked on a comprehensive roll out encompassing a new website, copywriting, photography, and signage. It was a real labour of love for us all, and a definite peak in the year. 

Lochology

With a cluster of holiday cottages in Argyll, Lochology forms a gateway to the Scottish Highlands. Owner Lisa came to us in need of a brand identity that would evoke a sense of luxury, retreat, and unspoilt nature. We responded with a woodcut-style logo and a colour palette inspired by Scotland’s natural landscape: water, ferns, sandstone, heather and granite. Taking our cues from the huge numbers of animals used in the cottages’ decor, we also introduced an otter illustration, adding a unique sense of character. 

Seasalt Cornwall

Seasalt is a Cornish icon – a brand known throughout the Duchy and well beyond. We’ve been admirers for a long time, so we were thrilled when Seasalt asked us to help write and design a team guide to the brand. We began by revisiting and reworking Seasalt’s values, before creating an essential guide to the brand’s world, in print and online. 

Norfolk Interiors

After being welcomed into the Pendennis family, Norfolk Interiors tasked us with creating an updated and aligned brand identity. We drew in a sense of the Pendennis values, while staying true to what makes Norfolk Interiors unique. Then, we devised a fresh visual identity and tone of voice and applied them to a new and expanded website. 

A social studio

From group strategy sessions in our studio and at Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens to ending with a bang as we celebrated over 30 years, 2024 has been a busy year. Keep an eye out for 2025, with more events planned following our sold-out collaborative session with Marwick Marketing and Hope Yard PR. 

Tresco Times

As usual, we’re rounding off December with a team favourite: the annual Tresco Times yearbook. Though we usually send the publication to print in winter, in reality it takes many months of planning and production to pull together. Conversations can begin as early as February, with work this year kicking off with an early summer photoshoot on Tresco and neighbouring Hell Bay. You’ll see the results in the latest Tresco Times – due to land on doorsteps in the New Year.

Nixon

And of course, one of our biggest projects this year was for ourselves. Admittedly, if we were a client, we’d have sacked ourselves several times, but after countless delays, hiccups, and changes of heart, Nixon finally has a contemporary new brand and website. We really put our collective weight behind this, beginning with the fundamentals of brand values and mission, and following through to rollout across our online platforms, print materials, and decks. Phew.

Still to come…

But that’s not all. As we see out the old year, we’re still busy working on some projects we’re not ready to share yet. With fair winds and following seas, we’ll be starting 2025 with new work for the lovely Emily Nixon, as well as a brand identity and rollout for a Cornwall-based artist and designer.

That’s all, folks

We’ll be wrapping up for Christmas from Friday 20th December, but we’ll be back in the studio on Thursday 2nd January. Until then, we wish you a very merry Christmas and a wonderful start to 2025.