Lauren McWilliams from For You Photography is a photographer and business owner based in Newcastle Upon Tyne. She chatted to me about her decision to change her logo and update her business branding during lockdown in 2021.
Hi Lauren, tell me a bit about your business
I’m Lauren and I run For You Photography. I’m based in Newcastle upon Tyne but I work across the UK helping small creative business owners to share their story visually, grow their personal brand and attract their ideal clients.
I started my business in 2019 and after meeting lots of businesses while I was networking, I realised I loved hearing each of their stories and I wanted to help them share their individual journeys with photography. Since then, I’ve worked with hundreds of businesses, helping them to use photography to stand out in the ever-growing online world.
How did you meet me and why did you decide to work with me?
I met you through Mint Business Club during the first lockdown of 2020. We started talking and I instantly felt like I’d known you for years. I looked you up online and loved the work you did – it kept popping up on my social media feed too and I felt we had quite a lot in common.
Having started my business in 2019, I loved my original logo but it just didn’t seem to fit with my business anymore. I’d updated my website and my logo was a stumbling block for me – it just wasn’t quite right anymore. I spoke to you about my frustration and you offered to help.
How did you find the whole process of working with me?
I knew what I wanted in terms of a logo but I’m no artist when it comes to drawing and design – give me a camera and a venue and my creative side is happy as anything, but graphic design is definitely not my strength! I sketched my logo idea out and you worked your magic from there. You gave me a few possible styles and I chose my favourite – I couldn’t have been happier.
Once I’d chosen the final design you sent me an amazing pack which was filled with variations of my logo for different uses. Different sizes and qualities for print and web. There was also a brand guideline document with all of my colour codes, logo variations and instructions about how to use my new logo.
What difference has your rebrand made to your business?
Since working with you on my rebrand it’s made a huge difference. I feel like it’s helped me to be a lot more consistent across my social media, website and even my photography style.
I absolutely love my new logo, which features the Tyne Bridge to signify my love of the city. But having the iconic landmark as part of my logo means so much more to me than merely identifying as a Newcastle business. The city has played such a huge part in my life and helped me start my business in the first place. It’s home to so many of my clients so it has a special place in my heart. I wanted to incorporate a camera lens into the bridge and Sam helped me do that brilliantly.
When it came to the brand colours, I just chose colours that I love. During lockdown I did my own set of portraits against my blue bedroom wall – they’re so different from any others I’ve seen and I love the colour so I went with that. I chose the orange for very personal reasons too – it’s the colour of my favourite Mac lipstick, neon orange – so it was an easy, and individual choice.
Would you recommend the experience of a rebrand with SK Design Studio?
Definitely, it was a pleasure to work with you on my rebrand and your ideas were all so close to my own that I felt like we had a really good fit.