Dessein

What Dessein does

Dessein is a privately held, boutique graphic design studio headquartered at 130 Aberdeen Street in Northbridge, Perth, Western Australia. Founded in 1987 and led by partners Tracy Kenworthy (Graphic Designer) and Geoff Bickford, the firm delivers integrated branding, packaging, product photography, wayfinding/interpretive signage, and publication/book design services. Its core specialisation is complete branding and packaging solutions — including brand strategy, visual identity systems, structural cardboard engineering, label and carton design, and print production management — for food, beverage, and consumer goods brands across Australia, New Zealand, and select international markets.

The studio operates a structured five-step packaging design process (Discovery & Briefing, Insight & Strategy, Concept & Creative Direction, Design Development, Implementation & Launch Support) anchored by a 'Brand Blueprint' strategic positioning document, and combines in-house design with a print production partnership (Percival Print & Packaging) for sampling and press checks. Its portfolio spans more than 50 named clients ranging from large enterprises (Cadbury, Kailis Australian Pearls, Black Swan State Theatre Company, EFM) to mid-market and SMB food/beverage brands (Mondo Nougat, Rubra Coffee, Margaret River Natural Spring Water, Otaika Valley Free Range Eggs, Hunsa, Wattle & Wax). The studio has accumulated a substantial international award record across Pentawards (including a 2014 'Best In Show'), Dieline Awards, Graphis Design Annual, and World Brand Design Society.

Dessein monetises through bespoke, quote-based professional services engagements with pricing not publicly disclosed; clients initiate contact via phone or email. The go-to-market is sales-led, driven by a content-rich website portfolio, long-standing client relationships that generate repeat and referral business, and third-party award validation. There is no evidence of external investment, parent company ownership, software products, or recurring subscription revenue streams; the business is a services-only professional partnership.

Name

Dessein

Legal name

Dessein

Website

https://dessein.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dessein is a boutique Perth-based graphic design studio, founded in 1987, that delivers branding, packaging, product photography, signage, and publication design for food, beverage, and consumer goods brands across Australia and New Zealand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Graphic Design Services

NAICS

Graphic Design Services (541430), Graphic Design Services (54143), Commercial Photography (541922)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Prepress, Plate-Making & Artwork Services (IMALAKAM)

Keywords

• Graphic design services
• Brand identity design
• Packaging design
• Product photography
• Publication design

Headquarters

HQ city

Northbridge, Perth

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Brand Strategy and Identity Services: Dessein provides brand development and strategy services, including brand positioning, visual identity, and communication strategy to help brands connect consistently with their target audience.
2. Packaging Design and Production Management: Comprehensive packaging design services including structural design, artwork, print procurement, production management, and product photography and styling for food, beverage, and consumer goods brands.
3. Publication and Book Design: Editorial design, commemorative books, catalogues, and publication design services for institutions and cultural organisations.
4. Signage and Wayfinding Design: Interpretive signage and wayfinding design services for museums, parks, venues, and public spaces.
5. Website Design and Development: Web design and development services for clients, including e-commerce websites.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Dessein is a boutique graphic design studio founded in 1987 in Perth, Western Australia, that provides strategic branding, packaging design, product photography and styling, wayfinding and interpretive signage, and publication and book design services. The studio primarily serves food, beverage, and consumer goods brands across Australia and New Zealand, delivering complete branding and packaging solutions from strategy through to print production and launch support.

Product overview

Dessein is an award-winning graphic design studio based in Perth, Western Australia, operating since 1987. The company offers a unified suite of design services centered around branding and packaging solutions for food, beverage, and consumer goods brands. The core offerings include Branding & Identity, Packaging & Design, Product Photography & Styling, Wayfinding & Interpretive Signage, and Publication & Book Design. These services are delivered as integrated design consultancy rather than standalone software products, with the studio working collaboratively with clients from discovery through to final production and launch support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Branding & Identity
• Packaging & Design
• Product Photography & Styling
• Wayfinding & Interpretive Signage
• Publication & Book Design

Quantifiable outcome

• Otaika Valley Free Range Eggs achieved market leader status in the free-range egg category in New Zealand following Dessein's packaging refresh.
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers39 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Percival Print & PackagingcoreOthersPercival Print & Packaging is a commercial printing partner that Dessein works with to produce packaging materials. Dessein sourced Percival Print as a referral for Wattle & Wax's packaging needs and collaborated to resolve print production challenges including stock sourcing and colour correction during press checks. Percival Print provides in-house digital printing capabilities used for print testing and sampling.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Robot Food: Boutique UK-based branding and packaging design studio specialising in food and beverage. Closely comparable in service scope (branding, structural packaging, photography) and target client mix of premium challenger brands.
• Denomination: Australian packaging design and brand strategy agency. Closely comparable geographic positioning and category focus, often competing for the same F&B and consumer-goods briefs in the Australian market.
• Pearlfisher: London-based branding and packaging design agency with a strong food & beverage specialisation. Highly comparable to Dessein in service mix (brand identity, packaging, structural design) and category focus on premium consumer food/beverage brands.
• Mousegraphics: Greek design studio renowned for packaging and brand identity work with consistent international award recognition. Comparable in craft-led positioning, F&B packaging focus, and award-winning pedigree.
• Carter Wong Design: Independent design agency with strong packaging and identity credentials and multiple international design awards. Comparable in mid-sized boutique positioning and category overlap in consumer goods packaging.
• Bulletproof: Independent global brand and packaging design agency with a Food & Beverage heritage comparable to Dessein — both compete for premium packaging briefs from challenger and enterprise CPG brands across multiple categories.
• Family (formerly Family Design): Australia-based independent design studio with similar scale and a comparable mix of branding, packaging and editorial work for consumer brands. Direct regional peer competing for Australian SMB and mid-market briefs.

Broad incumbents

• Landor & Fitch: Global branding and design consultancy. Overlapping capability in brand identity and packaging, but operating as a large network serving multinational CPGs — the type of competitor Dessein faces when pitching enterprise-tier work like Cadbury.
• Elmwood: Global brand design and consultancy with deep FMCG and consumer-goods expertise. Overlapping in brand identity and packaging delivery, with broader geographic reach and larger team capacity than Dessein.
• Pentagram: Global design partnership model. Comparable in partnership governance and ability to deliver at enterprise scale, but far broader in scope (identity, digital, environmental) and serves global blue-chip clients across categories well beyond Dessein's F&B focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/dessein

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Dessein