A step towards world domination?

It’s always gratifying to hear of a British design consultancy being acclaimed in the wider world, especially when it is one of the calibre of Elmwood.

The branding group has won a mix of creative and effectiveness awards in its time, voted on by peers and clients respectively, but though these are not to be sniffed at, you have to put your hat in the ring in the first place to have any hope of winning them. You even have to enter for inclusion in Design Week’s own Top 100 consultancy survey, in which Elmwood appeared in 17 slot this year.

Offices in New York and Melbourne have contributed hugely to Elmwood’s overseas success, says its chairman Jonathan Sands, amounting to an average increase of 96.4 per cent a year since 2008. With Singapore now also in the mix, where will it end?

What’s interesting is that Elmwood was purely Leeds-based when it set up more than 20 years ago, with an ambition to take on London groups in its pursuit of UK work. It just shows what you can achieve if you set your mind to it.