Back in 2021, a networking chum introduced me to a company called Sea-Fire Europe, specialists in marine fire suppression systems. They needed some business cards.
Nothing particularly unusual about that. I've designed thousands of business cards over the years, and although they might not be the most exciting design challenge in the world, they're often the first impression somebody has of a business. Little did I know where those particular business cards would lead. Five years later, I'm sitting at my computer working on Sea-Fire's latest exhibition stand for METSTRADE, the international marine equipment exhibition in Amsterdam. And between those two jobs, we've produced quite a collection of work. Signage, stationery, presentation materials, technical data sheets, sales literature, product manuals, folders, promotional graphics, packaging, exhibition stands and even Teams backgrounds. Looking through our job folders, it's quite remarkable how many different things we've worked on together.
But there's one particular project that I think illustrates why these client relationships develop.
A few years ago, Gary at Sea-Fire asked me to help with the artwork for some cardboard packaging boxes. The sort of boxes their fire suppression cylinders are supplied in. Now, I could simply have taken the information, arranged it on the box and sent the artwork off to print. Job done. But I started wondering whether we could do something a bit more interesting. I sent Gary an email asking a few questions. Were there restrictions on the printable area? Did the packaging company allow any flexibility? Was the same product going into every box? And, perhaps most importantly, could we actually design something rather than simply print information on cardboard? I included a couple of examples of packaging I'd seen, suggesting that perhaps we could use a silhouette or outline illustration of the product itself.
Gary's reply made me smile.
“Wow, I'd never thought of doing it like this…”
He checked what was possible with the packaging supplier, and we developed the idea further. The result was a range of cardboard boxes featuring bold typography and outline illustrations of the actual fire suppression cylinders inside. Different products, different illustrations, but all sharing the same visual approach. Nothing unnecessarily complicated. Just a simple idea that made the packaging more distinctive, more informative and more recognisably Sea-Fire. And it all came from asking whether there might be a better way of doing something.
That's one of the things I've always enjoyed about being a designer. Sometimes the most valuable contribution you can make isn't what the client originally asked you to do. It's suggesting something they hadn't considered. Of course, not every project needs a clever idea. Sometimes a technical data sheet simply needs to communicate a lot of complicated information clearly and accurately. And Sea-Fire has plenty of those! Over the years, we've developed a consistent visual approach across their literature and marketing materials, making sure everything feels part of the same family, whether it's a detailed product specification, a sales leaflet or a huge exhibition graphic.
Sea-Fire Europe is part of an American company, and it's particularly satisfying that we've also supplied master artwork to the US operation so they can follow the same visual language and maintain a consistent brand presentation.
Which brings me back to the exhibition stand.
Sea-Fire exhibits at major marine industry events, and we've been involved in producing exhibition graphics for several years now. The latest project is for METSTRADE in Amsterdam this November. And looking at that exhibition stand, I found myself thinking back to those original business cards. There was no grand plan in 2021. No elaborate strategy to turn a small design job into five years of ongoing creative support. A networking friend made an introduction. We did the work. More work followed. We got to know the people, the products and the business, and over time developed a relationship built on understanding, consistency and trust.
That's how some of the best client relationships grow. Not necessarily from winning a huge project at the outset, but from doing a good job, contributing ideas, being reliable and making yourself useful. And perhaps being curious enough to ask whether there's a better way of doing something, even when nobody has asked you to.
You never really know where a business card might lead.
