The Tromode Estate has been alight with music and cocktails these past two weekends as new arrivals Ashgrove Marketing celebrated the completion of their contemporary new offices with the surprise launch of its new brand.
Headquartered in the Isle of Man since 2007 and with offices in Detroit, Michigan, Ashgrove Marketing is a full service PR, design and digital agency which, for the past 8 years has called central Douglas its home. As the company and its client base has grown, however, so too has its desire for more and better space, resulting in the decision in October 2014 to relocate to warehouse sized premises with a stripped-down, ‘New York loft’ inspired finish. Months in the planning and execution, the open plan office was designed with the help of architect John Wilson of Wilson Consulting and resident Creative Director Leigh Windell, and offers a creative space where attention to detail reigns over every inch.
“We wanted to create something completely unique to us”, Leigh explained, “and the best way to accomplish that was by up-cycling and hand-rendering almost every feature. When we first arrived here the office was literally a concrete and steel box, but with the tireless help of Moya, Mannage IT and plenty of Ashgrove friends, we got the essentials in before getting on with what I would consider the fun part. We put together the Ashgrove bar, a dedicated design and craft area, break-out area, stage lighting, chalk board walls, gallery style boardroom – all sorts. Everything has been created using recycled products with hand finished features, and we’ve even hidden our initials throughout. The before and after pictures are amazing to see, and everyone involved deserves a huge thanks.”
Despite the new offices being in place by Christmas 2014, finishing touches being made over the next few months, and a brand new agency website launched just weeks earlier, Ashgrove didn’t stop there and instead embarked upon a major new rebranding project, again driven by Creative Director Leigh. “There are some very practical reasons for embarking upon a rebrand; reasons such as technology and platform shifts, alterations to company service offerings and structure, and fluctuations in consumer behaviours, but there are also some equally important, though often less tangible benefits,” she explained. “Ashgrove’s rebrand was in answer, predominantly, to the latter. We’ve always stayed on top of branding for the modern business environment, so this rebrand was to put the finishing touches to a series of landmarks for the agency and its people.”
“By now our brand name is well known and well respected, so we’ve stripped down our traditional typographic logo set, opting instead for a glyph or rune style emblem created from our initials. This simple graphic statement is bold, striking and works across all online and offline platforms. It’s incredibly versatile, and we intend to use it to its full extent, so keep an eye on more Ashgrove collateral to come. Finally, we rounded everything off with the new agency tagline, ‘Reputations. By Design.’; the meaning of which we’ll leave to our audience to ascribe.”
Ashgrove intends to roll out the results of its rebrand and brand-new office over the coming few days, with plenty of opportunities across social media and its website, www.ashgrovemarketing.im, to keep up to date with the cutting edge of design and marketing. It wasn’t all smooth sailing and cocktails, however, as founder and managing director, Terry Van Rhyn, explains: “We were very nervous moving away from the town centre. We’ve always been city dwellers and were used to the idea that an agency had to be right in the middle of things. But we’ve created our own buzz out here in the sticks. The office we’ve put together is a true creative environment and gives the team and our clients space to enjoy the marketing process. It’s an environment where people can freely interact and I think it’s often nice for clients to break out of the routine of town and, as the saying goes, get their heads together in the country.”
“Our decision to push ahead with an Ashgrove rebrand was also borne of the move. Rather than sit back and rest, as we probably should have done, we took a look at the new offices and the new website and decided that the time was right for a new look to tie everything together. Obviously, as branding experts, this was always going to be our toughest project, but Leigh knew exactly where she wanted to go with it and the results are incredible. The effect of tying together and reenergizing an office under a new brand never ceases to amaze me. We can take great pride in what we’ve produced and it’s everything we can do now to stop plastering our new logo all over the office. I’m very proud of everyone at Ashgrove for helping to create and support a brand which is just leaps ahead of anything else. Here’s to 2015!”
Photo - The Ashgrove team pictured left to right, Terry Van Rhyn, Kate Burne, Leigh Windell, Annie Macleod, Jessica Brown, Moya Wilson, Laura Bryan, Simon Jennings, James Dodge and Graeme Brooks.
