Small businesses deserve big treatment.
We believe small businesses are the heart and soul of commerce. They deserve the same level of strategic design thinking that our global brand clients receive.
We have distilled our knowledge working with global brands into a streamlined program for small businesses. We pride ourselves on long-term working relationships with clients of all sizes. We review applications each quarter and accept a limited number of clients. Apply to participate.
A few samples of our work for small business appear on this page, along with links to deeper case studies.
Fort George Brewery
Extensive branding & marketing projects
How do you launch a brewpub in a small, blue-collar town, and grow it into a mighty force of Northwest brewcraft? Fort George Brewery did it with award-winning beers, a strong community, and a tight collaboration with Plazm.
Sellwood Lofts
Identity, brand launch, stationery, marketing folder
Sellwood Lofts was designed and built by our local real estate developer Meakin Waxman.
Over the course of four years, they transformed a toxic waste dump into a thriving, desirable gathering place, complete with townhomes, retail shops, and a library. By partnering with several community organizations, including the neighborhood association and city council, they created an approachable and adaptable building that has paved the way for other small business owners to reclaim the Sellwood neighborhood. As a result of the loft’s transformative success, the project was nominated for The Governor’s Award in 2001.
The goal was to create an experience to have Sellwood Lofts look and feel like it had been there for a long time. The anchor tenant for the building is the Sellwood-Moreland Library. Ground floor retail, with condos on the second floor. We created an identity to match this feeling with a foil stamped stationery set along with a pillow-box to house marketing materials.
Sarah Bellum’s Bakery & Workshop
Naming, identity, brand launch, packaging
Sarah Bellum’s Bakery & Workshop is a not-for-profit, social enterprise bakery that supports adults with acquired brain injury (ABI), helping them return to work, play, and life by baking delicious, hand-crafted cupcakes. After launching at the Portland Farmers Market for two successful summers with help from Plazm, Sarah Bellum’s opened a brick and mortar location in Multnomah Village.
Sisters Wellness Collective
Brand strategy, graphic identity, brand launch
Sisters Wellness Collective brings together highly experienced professionals in the healing arts to serve the community of Sisters, Oregon. They understand the connectedness between a healthy individual and the health of the whole. The experience of a visit needed to be embodied in every touchpoint, from the logo to the referral slips and speak to clients and practitioners alike. Photo below shows a business card in the Sisters Wellness Center lobby.
We pride ourselves on long-term working relationships with clients of all sizes. We review applications each quarter for our Small Business marketing program and accept a limited number of clients. Apply to participate.