About Ech Design
Ech Design provide advanced web design and development, and sublime graphic design and print work. We believe that everyone has the right to good design. We invite you to explore this site to find out how and why……
Step & Repeat
Our printing partners 3SG Printers are launching a specialist Step and Repeat printing service to cater to the considerable demand for their skill in setting up high quality backdrops and branding walls for events.
We were glad to be asked to help them out with the development of the website to advertise this service, with 3SG carrying out the design work and Ech supplying our programming skills. The content managed site we have produced advertises the product options available and enables visitor to put together a custom quotation by choosing the options they need. Through clear illustration, a gallery and clear signposting to how to get in contact, the website is intended to make the process of ordering Step and Repeat printing, quick and easy.
Advocate Associates
New venture Advocate Associates supports people in accessing services, making complaints and upholding their rights as a consumer. Whether it is due to language barriers, confusion of service procedures or a person lacking the time to deal with an issue, they provide the support to enable people to pursue their agenda.
Inspired by the idea of giving people a voice, the branding and web design we have developed makes use of a speech bubble device, matched with concise, clear display of text. The website make use of subtle transitions and animation to explore the range of Advocate Associates services and incorporates their Twitter Feed alongside easy to use content management to enable them to keep it up to date.
3sg Printers
3sg Printers offer a one-stop-shop for any printing need to National and Local customers. They provide everything from standard printing of business cards and letterheads, through to van graphics, signage and shop installations, through to full-scale branding of events and step-and-repeat graphics.
We work closely with 3sg and value their printing expertise and it was great to be asked to build a new website to showcase their products and services. The website makes use of their distinctive branding and is split into sections covering all of their key service offering and showcasing numerous examples of their work.
From the website customers can make enquiries and upload artwork. The site is fully content managed, allowing 3sg to upload new photos of completed jobs, add new pages and allows them full control of title tags and other content needed to encourage search engine optimisation.
Wenzel’s the Bakers
Everyone in North West London knows that Wenzel’s is the best place to go for fresh bread, lunches and delicious cakes and the Ech team grew up with the brand. As a result we were particularly delighted to be asked to build on their existing brand and develop a new website to showcase the range of products available and their chain of stores.
We have designed and built a new website which We have concentrated on using natural textures and a high impact font that works well in online and print form. The website allows customers to order cakes and food for functions, learn more about the company, apply for jobs and keep up to date with news and special offers. The website is fully content managed to allow Wenzel’s to add new products and information and is fully integrated with social media to tap into the wellspring of interest amongst the local community and to allow others to get involved with the brand.
Beyond the design and programming of the site, Ech have got involved in photography, packaging design and are now enjoying assisting with Wenzel’s shop re-design programme.
Website: www.wenzels.co.uk | Facebook: www.facebook.com/wenzelsthebaker
Style Research
Style Research, providers of global investment research and portfolio analysis asked Ech to re-design their website. The new site developed for them maintains the clean, clear approach to the brand in line with the clarity of the investment information they provide.
In addition to use of a modern font style we have brought in a series of themed images to represent the areas described including use of the animal kingdom. The site is fully content managed, allowing Style Research to add and edit content, set up new pages, downloads, videos and blog items. We have developed a range of templates which ensure that additional content continues to use the design set for the site upon launch.
Brendons
The Brendons group is a well-known chain of estate agents in the Ealing area. They cover the full range of services from residential sales and lettings, through to commercial acquisitions, surveying and auctions.
Ech have developed a series of 3 interlinked websites to help to showcase the range of services Brendons offer and to allow existing and prospective customers to easily get in contact and find out more about the properties on their books at any one time. The new websites are fully content managed, allowing Brendons to edit the pages and add news items. We carried out a custom integration of the property details system they use which means that in real time customers can search and view extensive details of all of their properties including viewing photos at large size within a custom template that is as clear to read as a printed sheet.
Sonia Malik Artwork
Sonia Malik is a working artist and illustrator and needed a website to promote her upcoming exhibitions, to showcase new artworks for sale and to show the development process for works in progress.
The website Ech have developed uses a customised WordPress blogging system to allow Sonia to easily upload text and images, set up pricing and artwork details. All aspects of the content are configurable enabling the creation of new categories and pages as required. The website is integrated with various social media sites, to allow ‘liking’ and ‘sharing’ of content. Designed to be viewed across devices, the website employs a stylesheet which scales the design for use on tablets and mobile phones.
Green Light Research
Green Light are masters of consumer insight, employing innovative approaches to understanding their clients’ markets and purchasing patterns.
Ech were asked to refresh their branding, tackling a new logo and then building from this to produce an updated website, PowerPoint templates and stationery.
The website features a clean, minimalist look to match the fresh, sharp approach Green Light bring. It is fully content managed and makes use of slideshow techniques and image carousels to subtly showcase a range of content within a limited vertical height, making use of the green square motif.
Apteligen
Apteligen use structured analytical methods and present results innovatively to help organisations understand what their data is really telling them.
Ech were pleased to get involved with Apteligen at launch, developing a logo and branding for this new organisation. This branding has been taken forward into a fully content managed website, allowing Apteligen to add testimonials, case studies and edit any and all of the content on the site. We have kept to a minimalist aesthetic in keeping with the clarity of the Apteligen approach.
We were delighted to recently get involved in further developing the site: incorporating Apteligen’s Twitter feed and building further interaction in the form of a carousel slideshow and an interactive approach diagram.
Balance Verbier
Balance Verbier run courses designed to empower individuals and employees to reach their potential, set and achieve their goals and find fulfilment in their lives.
Ech were inspired by the naturally beautiful setting to create a mountain themed design and to bring in elements of the warmth that the training can give through more organic elements like the butterfly. The website is content managed and makes use of a clear font type, emphasis on quotations and ease of navigation to get its message across.
The Juke
Juke Magazine fills a gap in the world of music magazines, focussing on the weirdness, passion and iconic appearance of music, occupying a space that includes print, online, events, travel and fashion.
Ech were delighted to get involved with the creativity of The Juke, providing the technical skills to turn the Juke’s own design for their website into a fully functioning WordPress blog. The website is split into 3 main sections, a homepage featuring key articles, ‘backtrack’ a section listing articles and the individual articles view themselves. Each of these sections is tied together by The Juke’s unique design style and our technical architecture gives them the flexibility to continuously change and update articles to build an evolving magazine. Juke’s style is as much about fantastic photography, video and of course audio as it is about original writing and to represent this online we have provided full page image slideshows, post slideshows, embedded video and audio jukeboxes.
Access Redesign
The NHS and other public sectors are being asked to make tough decisions to make savings. Simple cuts will not make the grade and with adversity comes opportunities to entirely remodel services to provide better care at a better price. Access Redesign exists to help organisations make this change.
Ech have always had strong links to the public sector and were delighted to be able to get this new start-up off the ground with branding for the new venture and a small website which gives a rapid insight into the organisation. Access Redesign is about reducing complication and we have gone for a simple structure of pages and incorporated a Twitter feed to make it super-easy for Access Redesign staff to keep both their website and social media up to date.
StyleWithHeart
Ethical and eco-fashion is big news right now with many of us giving a bit more thought to how our consumer decisions impact on our world. StyleWithHeart aims to support this movement by providing easy access to information about the various types of eco-fashion and the plethora of brands (from big to cottage industry) which offer clothing and accessories which are ethically made and traded. We have worked with StyleWithHeart’s founder to develop the branding for this new enterprise and then to develop a website which we hope will grow to become a comprehensive listing of all the brands involved in this area.
We have gone for an elegant concept which makes use of white space and places the emphasis on the community of brands. The website lists brands by the ethical fashion areas they occupy and provides clear routes for visitors to explore the products and ethos of these brands. Brands can sign up to be involved with the site and enhanced listing brands are able to login to a secure section of the site to update any of their details any time they like. Visitors can also purchase approved products, find out about recent news and search for the type of clothing they are interested in.
Limestone Landscapes
Limestone Landscapes provide landscape gardening, tree surgery, grounds maintenance and outdoor cleaning services to the public sector, businesses and the public. They asked Ech to develop an updated website that would showcase their approach.
We have developed a gardening themed design that makes use of large images, simple animation and clear navigation to provide prospective and existing customers with comprehensive information about the company. The site is fully content managed so that the Limestone Landscapes team can keep the site up to date, edit and add new pages and upload new images for the image gallery section.
Hornblend
Hornblend is a new online magazine that aims to view the world through both African and Western lenses, providing insight into cosmopolitan life, heritage and culture for a multi-cultural audience.
Ech were excited to be asked to develop the branding and web site for Hornblend, working in partnership with the client who had a clear take on the style and feel that was required. We have developed a textured style in keeping with the subject matter to provide a rich photographic look to viewers of the magazine. Viewers can browse content across ordered columns, slideshows and full width articles, maintaining a consistent viewing experience. This aesthetic style is matched by fully featured blog functionality to allow readers to browse content by category, leave comments and be encouraged to explore through related posts and random posts showing alongside articles.
The first issue has just launched and we were delighted to get involved in setting up the initial site advertising and sourcing images. Look out for the next issue in the coming months which will no doubt witness the continuing evolution of the visual style.
Swakeleys School
Swakeleys School asked Ech Design to develop a new website to showcase the school to parents and students (prospective and existing attendees), keep visitors up to date with useful information and to celebrate achievements and news.
We have developed updated branding based around their enjoy, achieve, aspire, succeed motto and a new site which is fully content managed – allowing staff to edit every aspect of the pages, add news and flag important announcements. They can upload documents such as Ofsted reports, add images to the photo galleries, keep the calendar up to date and advertise recruitment opportunities, all wrapped up in a clean looking, easy to navigate site which makes use of embedded video, font replacement techniques and image slideshows. The new site has been generating impressive hits, with visitors spending time on the site and digging into the pages and is appearing prominently for school related and area based search terms.
Awards of London
Awards of London have the widest variety and best quality of awards, plaques, trophies and medals in the UK. They asked Ech to design a new website which would help them to showcase their products and encourage online ordering to go with their busy phone and shop sales.
We have developed a shopping cart driven site that allows the visitor to quickly find the type of trophy they are looking for, stipulate extra requirements such as engraving and place orders. We have implemented a strong visual style to differentiate Awards of London from their competitors and have concentrated on showing the products clearly, providing clear routes of navigation and offering the same level of service that you get if you phone the company directly.
We look forward to embarking on a programme of search engine optimisation (SEO) on the site to drive traffic and make the content even more visible to search engines.
My Pure Rush
MyPureRush provide their loyal client base with the best pit bikes, quad bikes, parts and equipment for the most fun on the track. Their existing site ran on a bespoke ecommerce php based platform, which was performing well, but the site design needed a lick of paint. Ech were commissioned to design an updated look for the platform and then to re-skin the entire site, integrating with the existing database and payment system.
We have gone for a tarmac, dirt, paint and engines inspired design, expanded the viewing area and streamlined the layout. Along with refined navigation and display of products, we have also built in ‘new items’ and ‘sale item’ scrolling listings and ‘customers also bought’ suggestions on the individual product pages. Ech are looking forward to orking with MyPureRush over the coming months to re-categorise their content and to further develop the payment system.
House Consulting
House Consulting works to implement progressive public policy, supporting public sector organisations to improve practice and overcome challenges.
Ech were commissioned to design a minimalist blog site which provides clients and partners with company information and provides a snapshot of current news and projects. We have developed a compact site which doesn’t labour the point – offering an elegant, text light summary of the House philosophy. The site employs a randomised background image so that different visits offer a different glimpse (more images to come in the coming months) and is fully content managed so that House staff can add new pages, blog posts and sections at their own pace.
Entelechy Arts
Entelechy is a participatory arts company based in south east London who work with people of all ages, abilities and backgrounds to produce high quality theatre, music, dance and video events and performances.
They asked Ech to develop a new website that is clear and simple to use to ensure their range of stakeholders can get involved, find out more about their work, and get in contact. Our solution: A minimalist design run from a WordPress system to allow Entelechy to add new information whenever they wish, including font-resizing, news feeds, and use of film footage captured from recent Arts projects. The website uses the popular Vimeo service to allow easy hosting of video, links with Flickr to allow Entelechy to easily add and amend their extensive photo galleries and allows visitors to leave comments agains projects and news.
Save the Planet Posters
The Matrix Knowledge Group asked Ech Design to design a series of Posters for display in their office to assist the company’s efforts to reduce energy wastage and minimalise environmental damage. We have developed a series of icon based designs as part of the Matrix brand.
In the hope that they can help other companies with their environmental efforts, Matrix asked us to add them to their website and subsequently we have developed a standalone site to enable easy downloading of the posters. Our objective over the coming months will be to build the search engine presence and to encourage other contributions of materials which can help companies achieve corporate social responsibility aims.
Larissahoops.com
Ech have just launched a portfolio website for up and coming Kenyan focused artist, Larissa Hoops.
Larissa’s priority was to showcase her work to best effect and we have concentrated our efforts on designing a gallery layout to the site that allows visitors to keep up to date with Larissa’s latest exhibitions and work. Visitors can leave feedback, read recent news and click image thumbnails to view the artwork at larger sizes.
The site runs on a content management system to allow Larissa to add new artwork and news as required and has been designed to provide a modern stylish interface that places the emphasis on the artwork itself – Ech believe that content is king!
Chart the Stars
Chart the Stars is a new online business offering unique gifts to those interested in finding out what the stars have to say about the future.
Ech were brought in to develop friendly and fun branding for the company and to develop an easy to use website allowing visitors to browse and purchase star charts. The website allows viewers to check out what the stars have to say about people in the public eye and to enter the details of themselves, friends or family to obtain their very own interpretation. It provides information about astrology and allows customers to place orders, check on the status of their orders and leave feedback.
The project involved an appreciation of design aesthetics, ecommerce and search engine optimisation (SEO) and was developed at pace to enable our clients to meet the Christmas rush.
Beaumont Estate
Ech Design have been working with London agency Thring on a suite of new printed materials in support of the Beaumont House conference venue and hotel.
The project has entailed coming up with something fresh and new, working with the Principal Hayley branding to create a range of branded materials to support marketing the venue, including a popup map, branded keycards, conference and hotel brochures and html emails.
We are currently developing materials in support of the relaunch of the White House on the site – a fantastic building, refurbished back to its best.
Maes Yr Haf – Restaurant with Rooms
Listed in the Times as one of the top ten restaurants to open in the UK in 2007, Maes-Yr-Haf offers fine cuisine and luxury stays to those seeking total relaxation on the Gower coast. They needed a website that captured the well-designed elegance and luxury of a visit to Maes-Yr-Haf, allowing people to explore the restaurant and rooms.
Ech have provided a design based around the interior design of the hotel (utilising wallpaper textures and the colours of the furnishings), undertaking photography and building a site that combines html (clear to search engines), flash movies, javascript enhancements (to add to the interaction) and a content management system to allow the Maes-Yr-Haf team to make regular updates.
Visitors can tour the different parts of the venue and find out about upcoming events, special offers and rates deal, while soaking up the atmosphere.
Thompson AVC
Thompson AVC are a bespoke provider of high tech security and cabling installations. They asked Ech to take their existing branding to a new level by developing an updated visual identity for the company. Ech put together an identity that is bright, bold and clear, working from the outset with the view that we wanted Thompson AVC to stand out from the staid corporate look of their competitors. Their refreshed branding can be seen on all of their stationery and collateral, on their website and on their fleet of vans and vehicles – keep your eyes peeled!
Loop2
Loop2 is a catalyst consultancy that focuses on helping organisations, partnerships, teams, groups and individuals understand, shape and respond to the complex worlds in which they operate. They wanted a clear, concise website that provided a blog style experience to allow visitors to dig into their articles and extensive expertise.
We designed a text-focused site, which uses a range of colours to aid navigation and which reinforces their existing branding. Clients can use the website to find out more about the organisation, get a feel for their current thinking – through their sharing of ideas in the blog – and can get involved by leaving comments or sending messages.
News Feed
Wrapping up the year in style 15th December, 2012
It’s been a busy few months for the Ech team. We’ve been working on amongst other things:
- Our first book cover design
- A design and content management revamp to the Worple Press website.
- A website for Verbier Vertical (launching any day now)
- A stock management system for Wenzel’s the Bakers
- Some brilliant user interface design projects for the Matrix Knowledge Group
2012 has been a really exciting year. We’ve been really lucky to have had such a variety of really exciting projects and to get the chance to work with some great people. Our plans for 2013 are even bigger: A new website just around the corner, a big new application we can’t say too much about yet and… if we’re lucky, some more great website and design briefs. Merry Christmas everyone, let’s all get a decent rest, 2013 is going to be a year worth staying awake for!
Wenzel’s wins Retail Innovation Award 24th September, 2012
We’re chuffed to bits to announce that Wenzel’s won the Retail Innovation Award at the Baking Industry Awards on 12th September. This award recognised the work Wenzel’s and Ech have done in partnership in the last year to completely rebrand all of their shops and online presence and the impact this has had on their commercial success. Wenzel’s have refitted the majority of their stores (the stragglers will be picked up shortly) with the newer, more appealing look we have developed with them. Funds spent on design needs to achieve results for clients, so were particularly pleased to win this award as it recognised the increased online and offline takings that can be generated from design and marketing innovation.
Welfare Reform 11th September, 2012
We’ve been busy for the last few months developing a web based application for measuring the impact of incoming policy changes for landlords and managers of supported housing and social housing. This tool has been developed in partnership with experts in the housing field and will enable users to pinpoint the financial impact on their provision of support and on the individuals they serve. To facilitate easy access we’ve developed the application to be fully smartphone compatible. More info to follow!
Responsive Design 14th August, 2012
2012 will be known as the year when usage of tablets and smartphones for browsing became a mainstream pursuit. It’s not about the geeks and the trailblazers any more, we’re all doing it.
As a result, it’s no surprise to find that we’re spending a lot of our training time keeping up to date on best practices in designing and building websites which are functional across various mediums and screen sizes and the recent crop of sites are all embracing responsive design principles (resizing and changing to fit the device) to ensure however you are looking at an Ech site, it looks great. Read the rest of this entry »
Run up to the end of 2011/12 14th March, 2012
It’s that time of year when we’re busy ensuring our paperwork is all up to date for the end of the financial year, finishing up a few rapid-fire and longer-term projects ready for the start of the new business year. It’s a great time to take stock in a year that saw us grow our technical capability to provide even more interactive websites in a tough UK business environment.
In the last couple of weeks we’ve been working closely with a marketing and design agency and launching websites for a gardening supplies company and an investment firm. More details and links to those soon. We’re ramping up efforts to support the RSPCA North West Middlesex with their shop-refit programme and dipping a toe into the Facebook App world with our first competition App.
A new wave of websites are currently being booked in and looking forward to getting cracking on those going into April.
A couple of smaller sites 11th February, 2012
The web team is keeping pretty busy at the moment working on the user interface design for a major investment application. It’s easy to get caught up in bigger projects and you can get so focussed you don’t step back and see the detail. To help with this we like to maintain the variety by mixing longer projects with rapid projects. With this in mind, two smaller sites we’ve just launched are a site for an Eleven Plus Tutor and a conversion of an existing design and website from flash to content managed HTML for a Market Research Space. Check them out….
2012 Kicks in 8th January, 2012
Ech wish a successful year in business to all of our clients, partners, associates and friends. You get us fired up about the year to come.
The year has launched with a bang. We’re busy working on an interface design project for a major piece of financial software, finishing an educational game, finalising some event marketing materials and getting going on a series of new websites. Phew!
You can view the News Archive.
Contact
email: info@echdesign.co.uk
cforms contact form by delicious:days
You can find our address and a more comprehensive enquiry form on the Contact page.
Ech
Ech Design Ltd, based in London, UK, specialises in web based design and development, graphic design, and print work. The company is three years old and employs a small dedicated team with expertise in graphic design, illustration, branding and consultation, web design, web development and search engine optimisation (SEO). Additionally, we work with a large network of associates and can provide other services such as PR, marketing, proof reading and animation / motion work.
Check out our portfolio of web and print work and feel free to drop us a line if you are keen to discuss a project, a collaboration or just want to shoot the breeze.