"The cool kids on the block were looking to be just that! The challenge I gave myself was to express how the team at Grounded Media feel on the inside, on the outside.

I understand brands and their complexities, so I took to communicating the essence of Grounded Media and the work they do, through their space. It required hours of sourcing unusual, memorable pieces from all corners of the country and collaborating with talented creatives in all fields. Kristen at Design Kist made the wallpaper come to life, Jane at Fabric Nation helped me choose the perfect print for each theme and of course Para, an exceptional local beader, collected cans and created the magnificent chandeliers and buffalo.

The result really blew us all away, including client of course. One staff member even said she was excited to come to work the next day. It absolutely made it all worth it and I can't wait to work on my next interior project!" - Sivan Portal

More and more business people fly into Africa’s business capitals as business opportunities grow and airlines improve access. But people don’t know they can use their Visa cards when they get there, and many of the cities are intimidatingly chaotic, especially for first time travellers. What a great excuse to develop a fabulous pocket-sized travel guide!

So we brought together experienced writers who’ve done business in these cities, and asked them to choose the best places to shop, eat and sleep in each city. Short lists of their best recommendations, peppered with useful tips and things to do for travellers with a weekend at leisure. We peppered it with colourful visuals and made it a pleasure to read – so now those businesspeople won’t dread their trip, they’ll be excited to explore, and they’ll use their Visa cards.

We’re converting it to an e-Guide which you can read soon, and an app for i-Pads is on the way...

Unless you follow Matfield’s tweets, you won’t know that each Bok was given custom-made gifts by ABSA to take with them on their journey to the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

ABSA approached us to create these 30 personalised books for the squad and their management. We set to work with the heavy production work on this job. The challenge was to create 30 personalised books (as in each one is different), that looked stunning (we are talking about keepsakes for the Springbok World Cup squad here) and within the allocated budget and timeline.

Our resident production guru, Rachelle Raff, jumped at the challenge and mockup, after mockup, the challenge was solved. In end, we went to print with what we are sure is a record-breaking 72 PDF files! The result is stunning - we added an authentic touch by using different papers for the messages from the Team of Millions, nostalgic images and inspiring words.
 

We came in with a strong strategic team and started by developing a new strategy. Our creative objective was to uplift this brand to match its product, and that meant creating a South African destination brand that could stand its own in the international market.
 
Award-winning designer, Joanne Theron, and our resident Chief Imagination Officer, Sivan Portal, set to work. One of the challenges we faced was that there was a certain level of equity in the “evolution” figures of the logo – they had become recognizable to those who knew the brand. And so, we decided to keep them as an integral part of the logo, resulting in a brand facelift rather than an overhaul.
 
The result is a contemporary look with a warmer palette. Illustrator Martin Joel designed a series of “wallpapers” to add to a local aesthetic. We launched the new identity with the release of a full brand manual complete with a strategic objectives, visual guidelines and creative templates for a variety of media.

We were asked to create a beautiful brochure to showcase urban rejuvenation projects that have been happening in Joburg’s CBD over the last few years – this included research, content development, copywriting, photography and of course, design and layout.
 
Researcher and copywriter, Dani Weakley, got to work interviewing several developers that have played an integral part in these projects. Photographer, Caroline Suzman went off to shoot some of the show-stopping images featured in the brochure, entitled “A Changing Skyline”. Back at the office, we fleshed out a design concept over a few cups of coffee. Each page of the brochure has a Joburg skyline, the skyline changes a little on every page and the end result is an old school “flip book” – flip the right hand pages of brochure at a speed and voilá, watching as Joburg’s “changing skyline” evolves.  

The buzz died down and the tourists cleared out – the 2010 FIFA World Cup was over but it seemed our work was not.
 
Visa approached us to create a coffee table book that captured some of the key moments of the tournament in its pages. The book was a limited edition (only 30 copies) for a selected group of executive, international Visa staff. This project was an absolute honour for us more than anything.
 
A little calendar device in the corner of each page takes the reader through this story day by day. We had full access to Getty’s photographic library, a dream come true for any designer. The final result is a the stuff that time capsules are made of; a keepsake that tells a story through absolutely stunning imagery and heart-warming words. It’s worth a visit to our offices to see one, we promise.

2010 was a huge year for us, as we printed millions of pieces of collateral for the Fifa World Cup. But a highlight was the gorgeous handy guide we did for Visa. So popular that it was reprinted 3 times, and eventually 120 000 were snapped up by fans.

The booklets guided fans on where to play and party in each host city, with maps to the stadia, game schedules and cool attractions where you’d get a discount by paying with Visa. The photos are bright and capture the unmistakably South African vibe which made the event such a success. It was written in a fun, almost cheeky African style, with great insider tips. Printed on quality paper stock with spot UV varnishes to catch the light, this little booklet will sit in bookshelves around the world as momento.