Output Group

What Output Group does

Output (legal entity: Studio Output Limited) is an independent, female-led brand and digital design studio headquartered in London. Founded in 2002 and restructured under current ownership in September 2020 when Managing Director Gemma Ballinger and Creative Director Johanna Drewe took the studio over from the original founders, Output employs an estimated 10–20 people across strategy, brand design, digital design, copywriting and motion disciplines.

The studio delivers integrated brand and digital engagements across four service lines: brand strategy and positioning, visual and verbal identity, digital experience design (websites and apps), and brand launch and activation. Its technical core is built around Figma for prototyping, component libraries and design-to-code handover, supplemented by freelance Webflow developers. Output's distinctive methodology runs brand and digital design in parallel sprints under one roof with shared Figma files and reverse-share client feedback loops, producing deployable design systems rather than abstract identity documents.

Output generates revenue through three streams: project-based fees for brand and digital engagements, ongoing retainer arrangements (notably with CALM), and the Output Ventures programme which matches client cash with Output's own creative time up to £100k for early-stage startups. The client base spans enterprise and growth-stage companies across fintech (ClearBank, Zempler, CoinShares, Octopus Money, Pie), entertainment (Dave/UKTV), audio (Mixcloud), telecoms (Cuckoo), software (Notch), music (Temple) and purpose-driven organisations (CALM, Alfred Landecker Foundation). The studio is privately held with no disclosed institutional investors and operates a nine-day fortnight working model.

Name

Output Group

Legal name

Studio Output Limited

Website

https://studio-output.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Output (Studio Output Limited) is an independent, female-led London-based brand and digital design studio delivering integrated strategy, identity, and experience services to enterprise clients, startups, and charities across fintech, entertainment, audio, and purpose-driven sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Brand and Digital Design Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Printing (32312)

SIC

Service Industries For The Printing Trade (2790)

akta.pro primary industry

Employer Brand Strategy & Talent Branding (BPAFAEAH)

Keywords

• Brand strategy services
• Visual identity design
• Digital experience design
• Creative design studio
• Brand repositioning services

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Project-based brand and digital design services: Output generates revenue through fee-for-service design engagements, providing brand strategy, visual identity, verbal identity, UX/UI design, and web/app design and build to clients. Projects are scoped and priced individually, covering brand architecture, digital experience design, motion design, and brand launch activation.
2. Ongoing retainer arrangements: Output maintains retainer relationships with select clients, such as CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), providing a small paid retainer plus dedicated design days per month on an ongoing basis, enabling iterative post-launch improvements.
3. Output Ventures (co-investment programme): Output Ventures offers early-stage startups an unfair advantage by co-investing creative time equal to the client's cash commitment (capped at £100k all-in). The programme targets game-changing startups creating products that advance humankind, improve lives, or protect the planet, providing brand strategy, design activation, and methodology expertise in exchange for project fees plus equity or creative time credit.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Output is an independent brand and digital design studio that delivers integrated strategy, visual identity, verbal identity, and digital experience design for growth-stage and established companies. Engagements cover brand positioning, brand architecture, logo and identity systems, UX/UI design, and web/app design and build, plus brand launch and activation programmes such as toolkits, guidelines, and employee engagement.

Product overview

Output is an independent, female-led brand and digital design studio that offers integrated strategy, identity, and experience services. Rather than a standalone product platform, the company delivers creative services across four interconnected areas: brand strategy and positioning, visual and verbal brand identity, digital experience design (websites and apps), and brand launch and activation. The studio is distinguished by its integrated approach, bringing brand and digital disciplines together under one roof with teams working simultaneously on shared timelines rather than sequentially. Output also runs a Ventures programme that provides startup brands with matched creative investment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Brand Strategy and Positioning Services Strategic consultancy encompassing brand positioning, proposition development, vision and mission definition, values and character work, and digital strategy to help client leadership teams understand their identity and direction.
• Brand Identity Services Visual identity and verbal identity creation including brand architecture, logo design, color systems, typography, tone of voice, and design systems that translate business visions into expressions for target audiences.
• Digital Experience Services Transformation of digital properties through information architecture, UX design, content strategy, UI design, and web/app design and build to redefine organizations and communicate their value proposition.
• Brand Launch and Activation Services Programmes to rally teams around new brands including employee engagement, brand launch campaigns, toolkits, guidelines, and ongoing brand guardianship to create impact and build cohesion.
• Output Ventures Programme Startup support initiative where Output matches client investment with creative time (up to £100k all-in), providing brand methodology, strategic rigour, and design activation for early-stage companies creating products that do good.

Quantifiable outcome

• Revenue up 35% and Customer Satisfaction up 52% post-rebrand for Zempler
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Reed WordscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOutput partnered with Reed Words, a specialist naming agency, to develop the new name 'Zempler' for Cashplus. Reed Words blended 'simpler' and 'exemplary' to create a name that sets a new benchmark in the digital banking category, supporting the brand's 'savvy simplicity' strategic positioning.
• Oh No Type CompanyminorOthersOutput selected the 'Obviously' typeface from Oh No Type Company for CALM's brand identity. The typeface's variable cuts and weights allow the charity to augment messages creatively while reducing for sensitive information where function is the priority.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Moving Brands: London-headquartered independent brand and experience design studio offering integrated brand strategy, visual identity, and digital experience work. Closely comparable in service scope, client profile, and studio-led delivery model.
• Pentagram: Independent, partner-led design consultancy with offices in London and globally. Direct peer to Studio Output given shared model of integrated brand identity and digital work for enterprise clients, with similar size and culture-driven positioning.
• Studio Dumbar: Independent design studio known for brand identity and motion design, often recognised in the same awards circuits as Output (Awwwards, Brand Impact). Comparable in studio-led, identity-first engagement model for mission-driven and enterprise clients.
• Saffron Brand Consultants: Independent brand consultancy with London presence offering brand strategy and identity for enterprise clients. Comparable mid-sized peer focused on integrated brand work, though with a heavier strategic/consulting tilt and less digital product emphasis.
• Elmwood: Independent brand design and digital experience studio with UK roots and global delivery. Directly comparable integrated brand + digital offering for enterprise clients, similar studio size and direct-to-client engagement model.

Broad incumbents

• Lippincott: Global brand strategy and design consultancy with a strong enterprise client roster. Comparable in delivering integrated brand strategy and identity work for large corporates, but with deeper international footprint and longer heritage.
• Siegel+Gale: Global brand strategy, design, and experience consultancy with a strong enterprise client base. Comparable on integrated brand strategy and identity services for large corporates, but with broader geographic reach and deeper strategic/consulting heritage.
• Superunion: Large global brand and design consultancy within the WPP network, offering brand strategy, identity, and digital experience services. Overlaps directly with Output's integrated brand+digital offering but operates at much greater scale with broader geographic reach.

Emerging players

• Koto: Independent brand and digital design studio with strong positioning in startup and challenger brand work. Overlaps with Output's Output Ventures-style startup engagement and integrated brand + digital capability, though younger and growing more rapidly.

Others

• Reed Words: Specialist naming and verbal identity agency that partnered with Studio Output on the Zempler rebrand. Included as an adjacent/ecosystem peer representing specialist collaborators Output pairs with on integrated brand engagements.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/studiooutput
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/studio-output
• Instagraminstagram.com/studiooutput

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Output Group