Universal Favourite
Universal Favourite is a private Australian design studio of around 8-15 people in Surry Hills, Sydney, delivering brand strategy, visual and verbal identity, packaging, illustration and digital design to a globally distributed client base across consumer, F&B, health and enterprise categories.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersSurry Hills, Australia
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Universal Favourite does
Universal Favourite is a privately held, founder-led design studio founded in 2008 and headquartered in Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia. It operates with a compact team of approximately 8-15 designers, strategists, copywriters and producers, and delivers project-based brand design services — including brand strategy, visual and verbal identity, packaging, illustration, photography art direction, website design, motion and copywriting — to a globally distributed client base spanning Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Ireland, Switzerland and parts of Asia. Its portfolio is diversified across verticals (food and beverage, sexual wellness, fertility, contact lenses, bone broth, audio hardware, youth media, and personal care) and includes credible enterprise engagements (Sonos, YouTube, eBay, The Other Art Fair, SBS) alongside startup and mid-market work. The studio monetises primarily through quoted creative services engagements and supplements revenue with a direct-to-consumer e-commerce shop selling proprietary 'Piece of Mind' puzzles and referral/affiliate merchandising of select client products, including the modular 'Complements' chocolate line shipped to more than 20 countries.
The studio is bootstrapped with no disclosed institutional investors or parent entity. It sustains a high-prestige brand position through near-annual recognition at D&AD, ADC, AGDA, Best Design Awards, AIGA, Awwwards, Dieline, Fast Company World Changing Ideas and Transform Magazine between 2017 and 2025, and through regular features in BP&O, Brand New, Creative Boom and Dezeen. Operationally, it relies on a tight ecosystem of repeat specialist collaborators (Cat Wall on verbal identity, Untangld on strategy, Double Up Studio on 3D/animation, THINK on packaging implementation, Ten Two on web development) to scale delivery without proportional headcount, while pursuing selective geographic expansion through international hires, an Indonesia launch (Butter Baby), and US thought-leadership presence (Brand New Conference 2026).
Universal Favourite firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Universal Favourite
- Legal name
- Universal Favourite
- Website
- https://universalfavourite.com.au
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Universal Favourite is a private Australian design studio of around 8-15 people in Surry Hills, Sydney, delivering brand strategy, visual and verbal identity, packaging, illustration and digital design to a globally distributed client base across consumer, F&B, health and enterprise categories.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Universal Favourite industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Brand Design Services
- NAICS
- Graphic Design Services (541430), Gift, Novelty, and Souvenir Retailers (459420)
- SIC
- Retail-Miscellaneous Retail (5900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Integrated Full-Service Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Packaging & Brand Identity Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAN)
Keywords
Where Universal Favourite is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Surry Hills
- HQ country
- Australia
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices1 record
Markets served
Universal Favourite business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Brand Design Services: Project-based creative services including brand strategy, visual identity, packaging design, illustration, website design, and campaign creative for client brands
- Product Sales (Puzzles): Direct-to-consumer sales of 'Piece of Mind' puzzle collection and potentially other merchandise through own e-commerce store
- Client Product Sales: Features and sells client products through the UF shop (referral/commission model)
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Piece of Mind Puzzles - Room with a View |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Piece of Mind Puzzles - Other variants |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels9 records
Universal Favourite product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Universal Favourite is a brand design studio that crafts brand identities and visual experiences for clients across diverse industries. Their core service offering spans brand strategy, verbal identity, visual identity, packaging design, illustration, art direction, photography, website design, motion graphics, and copywriting — delivered as end-to-end brand transformation projects. In addition, the studio develops and sells proprietary branded merchandise including the Piece of Mind limited-edition 1000-piece puzzle collection.
Product overview
Universal Favourite is a design studio that crafts refreshing brand identities and visual experiences for clients across diverse industries. Their core offering consists of brand strategy, visual identity, verbal identity, packaging design, illustration, art direction, photography, and website design services. Beyond client work, they develop their own branded merchandise including the Piece of Mind puzzle series (A Still Life, The Homebody Club, Room with a View) — 1000-piece puzzles illustrated by different artists — and Complements Chocolates, modular artisan chocolates sold internationally. The studio has worked with clients including Butter Baby, The Dinner Ladies, Saintly, WHEN Fertility, Best of the Bone, Colour Mill, LBDO, IKU, Dimple, Mosh, Good Pair Days, KraveBeauty, Flaus, and YouTube Creator Music.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Piece of Mind: 1000-piece puzzles designed and conceptualized by Universal Favourite, a product line of limited-edition puzzles illustrated by various artists.
- Complements
Products and services
- Brand Design Services End-to-end brand design services for client brands covering brand strategy, verbal identity, visual identity, packaging design, illustration, art direction, photography, website design, motion graphics, and copywriting. Services are delivered as project-based engagements with a specialist team spanning strategy, design, and production.
- Piece of Mind — A Still Life A 1000-piece limited-edition puzzle illustrated by Lucy McGinley, designed to encourage mindfulness and relaxation, sold through the UF online shop.
- Piece of Mind — The Homebody Club A 1000-piece limited-edition puzzle illustrated by Joy Li, featuring a cozy scene celebrating down time, sold through the UF online shop.
- Piece of Mind — Room with a View A 1000-piece limited-edition puzzle illustrated by Jack Forrest, depicting a view from home, sold through the UF online shop.
- Complements Chocolates Modular artisan chocolates designed as interlocking staircase shapes that combine two flavours into one bite, with unique flavour and colour combinations. Originally created as an end-of-year client gift and later made available for purchase, shipped to over 20 countries.
Quantifiable outcome
- 60% customer retention rate (double industry average) for IKU rebrand
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Universal Favourite
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Universal Favourite technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Universal Favourite partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- UntangldcoreStrategic brand partner collaborating on multiple projects including Wholesome, CADA, and The Other Art Fair. Provides brand strategy services that complement UF's design execution capabilities.
- Double Up Studiocore3D renders and animation partner for Saintly Divine Dispenser product development and Butter Baby character animation and rigging.
- THINK (Packaging)minorPackaging solution partner connecting with Colour Mill for packaging design implementation.
- VMLminorResearch partner for WHEN Fertility project, conducting focus groups, one-on-one interviews and stakeholder research.
- Cat WallcoreCopywriter collaborator on verbal identity and tone of voice development. Worked on multiple projects including The Dinner Ladies, Wholesome, CADA, Colour Mill, IKU, and Good Pair Days.
- Cocoa NibminorChocolate maker for Complements product, developing flavors and production for modular chocolate line shipped to 20+ countries.
- Meltdown ArtisanminorArtisan chocolate producer for original Complements product development.
- TONE AgencyminorAgency partner for The Other Art Fair verbal identity development.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Universal Favourite competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Pentagram: The world's largest independent design studio operating a partnership model of senior designers. Pentagram is the benchmark boutique creative agency against which studios like Universal Favourite position themselves for brand identity, packaging and visual systems work.
- Mucho: Independent design studio specialising in brand identity, editorial and packaging for cultural and consumer clients. Comparable boutique studio serving similarly ambitious brand clients across global markets.
- Manual: Boutique design studio focused on brand identity, packaging and digital experience. Manual is a directly comparable boutique creative firm with a similar independent-studio model and consumer-brand focus.
- Collins: Independent, design-led brand consultancy known for identity systems, packaging and digital experiences. Collins is a directly comparable boutique studio serving ambitious consumer and tech brands with a similar craft-led positioning.
- For The People: Australian creative agency and former employer of UF's Head of Creative Partnerships. Operates as a mid-sized Australian agency competing for similar brand strategy and identity briefs in the local market.
Broad incumbents
- Interbrand: Global brand consultancy operating across brand strategy, identity and experience. Interbrand is a former employer of UF's Head of Creative Partnerships James Cooper and competes for similar enterprise branding engagements.
- Landor & Fitch: Global brand consultancy within WPP covering brand strategy, identity, packaging and experience design. Competes with Universal Favourite on enterprise rebrand mandates but at vastly larger scale and network footprint.
- FutureBrand: Global brand consultancy within the Interpublic Group, providing brand strategy and design across consumer and corporate clients. FutureBrand is another former employer of James Cooper and overlaps with UF on strategic brand work.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Universal Favourite social profiles
Digital presenceUniversal Favourite financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Universal Favourite leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Universal Favourite funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Universal Favourite M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Universal Favourite
What does Universal Favourite do?
Universal Favourite is a brand design studio that crafts brand identities and visual experiences for clients across diverse industries. Their core service offering spans brand strategy, verbal identity, visual identity, packaging design, illustration, art direction, photography, website design, motion graphics, and copywriting — delivered as end-to-end brand transformation projects. In addition, the studio develops and sells proprietary branded merchandise including the Piece of Mind limited-edition 1000-piece puzzle collection.
Is Universal Favourite a public or private company?
Universal Favourite is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Universal Favourite founded?
Universal Favourite was founded in 2008. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Universal Favourite based?
Universal Favourite is headquartered in Surry Hills, Australia, in the Oceania region.
How does Universal Favourite make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Brand Design Services are the primary driver. The others are product Sales (Puzzles) and client Product Sales.
Who are Universal Favourite's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Pentagram, Mucho, Manual, Collins and For The People. Broad incumbents are Interbrand, Landor & Fitch and FutureBrand.
Does Universal Favourite have an API?
No public API is recorded for Universal Favourite.
What industry is Universal Favourite in?
Universal Favourite's product category is Brand Design Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAAAAAA, Integrated Full-Service Creative Agencies, with a secondary code of MPAAAAAN, Packaging & Brand Identity Creative Agencies. Its NAICS code is 541430 and its SIC code is 5900.