Wolff Olins picks up Best of Show Benchmark award

Major network branding consultancies have emerged triumphant in this year’s Design Week Benchmarks as some of the strongest performers in cross-platform brand communication. Omnicom-owned Wolff Olins took the Best of Show award for its work with Macmillan Cancer Support, while sister group Interbrand was one of two runners up for its ongoing branding for Barclays.

Judged largely by a panel of design clients, the Benchmarks was launched last year to celebrate branding campaigns that are successful across multiple platforms. Work deemed to raise the bar in its respective category is given a Benchmark, and 12 winners were chosen from this year’s 17 industry categories, with many more published in the book.

The judges were unanimous in choosing Wolff Olins’ work for the Macmillan Cancer Support charity as an outstanding example of how brand communication can achieve the results required by an organisation. The panel handed the group the Best of Show award, as well as naming it best in the not-for-profit category.

Wolff Olins was asked to raise awareness of the charity’s services and increase its appeal among younger fundraisers. It changed the name from Macmillan Cancer Relief to Macmillan Cancer Support, as a reflection of the aid the organisation provides, and produced communications material ranging from advertising to T-shirts and campaign ribbons.

NB Studio’s refresh of the Mothercare brand – conducted under the auspices of the retailer’s external design advisor Michael Wolff – was the second runner-up in the Best of Show honours and winner in the retail category. The group rationalised the visual system throughout the Mothercare stores, promoting value for money as the brand’s core proposition.

Interbrand’s continuing management of the Barclays brand won the group the financial services category award, as well as the Best of Show runner-up award. Through the work, Barclays is aiming to shed the traditional perception of large financial services organisations.

Interbrand adopted a theme of ‘inventive spirit’ to develop the bank’s visual identity and tone of voice, in a programme extending across internal and external communications and including a special poster campaign at Canary Wharf station marking the company’s move to new premises there.

Williams Murray Hamm won Benchmarks in both the professional services and food and drink category, for its work on Fetch Dog Care and Biloxi Southern Foods respectively. Johnson Banks also won two categories: the public sector award for its Think London identity for London First Centre and the sport, leisure and travel award for its Pleasure Beach Blackpool identity.

The other winners were Hat Trick Design for the branding of Land Securities’ Bankside 123 development in London; Video Networks’ branding for Homechoice television service; Elmwood’s work for cutlery manufacturer Richardson Sheffield; Blast’s branding and marketing campaign for Arjowiggins’ paper product Inuit; and Rareform London for the rebrand of United Arab Emirates telecoms company Etisalat.

By Scott Billings

BENCHMARKS JUDGES:

Beverley Churchill – Marketing director, Bhs

Clive Grinyer – Director of design, Orange France Telecom

David Delaney – Head of brand management, Barclays

Desirée Collier – Managing director, Marsteller London

Dilys Maltby – Founding partner, Circus

Dorothy Mackenzie – Chairman, Dragon

Fanny Sigler – Creative director, Central Office of Information

Harriet Devoy – Creative director, Apple Computer EMEA

Roland Unwin – Visual communications manager, Cafod

Sunita Yeomans – Creative controller, Argos

Chairman: Lynda Relph-Knight – Design Week