The visionary architecture firm whose 1940 Crow Island School project revolutionized human-centered design has ushered in a new era of self-expression. Like the school that catapulted Perkins&Will to fame, the firm’s new brand identity—revealed publicly for the first time today—emphasizes beauty in humanity, simplicity, and clarity of communication.
“Our goal is to deliver the content that matters most to our clients in a clear, confident, impactful way,” says Phil Harrison, CEO of Perkins&Will. “The enhancements we’ve made to our look, feel, and voice are designed to help us achieve that. They also reflect our values better, showing the world who we are and what we stand for.”
Flexibility in Communication
The new Perkins&Will brand is built on a concept of flexibility. A range of communication styles allows the firm to share content with clients in a way that’s tailored to their unique preferences. The brand is both timeless and classic, yet also flexible enough to dial up or dial down creative expression as needed.
A Legacy-Inspired Logo
Perhaps most noticeable is the logo, inspired by the firm’s vintage mark from the 1940s. A modern interpretation of the original, which helped define firm for over 60 years, it’s a nod to the firm’s legacy with a regard toward the future.
Stories about People
The firm is also doubling down on its commitment to human-centered storytelling. There’s a renewed focus on telling stories about everyday people who use the built environment, and about the people who design built environments every day.
“People are at the heart of everything we do. We want to tell stories of how our projects and teams are making a positive difference in people’s lives,” Harrison says.
Designed from the Heart
One of the things that make the rebrand of Perkins&Will particularly special is that the design concept, strategy, creation, and implementation were done almost entirely in-house. A highly collaborative cross-section of the firm’s designers, business leaders, marketers, graphic designers, and communications specialists—with the input of key clients—worked together for more than a year to craft the new identity. It was a rigorous process, Harrison notes, but one that resulted in a brand that’s as beautiful as it is authentic.
Serving Clients Better
In its totality, the new Perkins&Will brand represents much more than a new look and feel. It’s a platform on which to better serve the firm’s clients, allowing for more a personalized, relevant, and modern expression of the firm’s heritage and values.
“The Perkins&Will brand is iconic because it’s built on an 85-year legacy,” Harrison says. “But it’s also a fresh, unequivocal expression of our core values—and how those values help us deliver world-class design solutions to our clients. It tells the world why we do what we do.”