Why design exists
A remote in-house studio built on clarity, collaboration and accessibility.
About us
Why Design isn’t a traditional agency. We’re a collective of designers, developers, photographers, writers and creatives who plug directly into your business. Think of us as a remote in-house design studio – flexible, accessible and part of your team, without the overheads of hiring internally.
From day one, we built the studio around collaboration. The best design happens when people work together, not in silos. That’s why we don’t sit on the outside handing over files – we embed ourselves into your workflow, your tools and your team. Whether we’re working with a marketing agency on a client’s rebrand, or with an in-house marketing department managing multiple brands, we operate as a seamless extension of the setup.
Design, for us, is never decoration. It has to have purpose. The colour of a headline, the shape of a logo, the layout of a page – none of these decisions are arbitrary. They’re guided by research, psychology and understanding how audiences think, behave and make decisions. We share that thinking with our clients because we believe design should be a conversation, not a mystery.
Accessibility is part of that mindset too. If design doesn’t work for everyone, it doesn’t work. We build accessibility into every project – websites that meet WCAG standards, print layouts that prioritise legibility, campaigns that reach the widest possible audience. It’s good practice, it’s good ethics, and it strengthens the EDI and social value commitments of the organisations we work with.
Our experience is as varied as our clients. Collectively we’ve worked with start-ups finding their first voice, entrepreneurs launching new ideas, established businesses managing growth, and major brands pushing into new markets. Public sector, automotive, sport, health, retail – we’ve been there. And because many of us have run our own businesses too, we understand the commercial pressures our clients face. That’s why our ideas are creative but also practical, innovative but deliverable.
What makes Why Design different is not just what we create, but how we work. We’re a network of specialists who come together around your needs. No big agency overheads, no unnecessary account management, no layers to cut through. Just experienced creatives working directly with you, helping you deliver design that informs, persuades and inspires.
That’s the Why Design philosophy: clarity, purpose and accessibility in everything we do. It’s why agencies trust us to deliver for their clients, and why in-house marketing teams rely on us as their design studio without the overheads. We don’t just make things look good – we make them work.
The team
Del Cruft
Lead Designer
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.
Matt Leyland
Senior Designer / UX Designer
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.
Rich Stevens
WordPress designer
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.
Jen Swales
Senior designer / Illustrator
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.
Anna Forgaard
Copywriter
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.
Kate Treen
Copywriter
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.
Tom Arran
Photographer
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.
Joe Harrington
Videographer
Del is particularly skilled in brand creation and execution which works seamlessly across all media and channels. Whilst creativity is a key to his work, brand and marketing strategy is equally important. Having worked alongside marketeers for much of his career he understand the importance of developing a framework to align your brand character, behaviour, appearance and actions so they work in unison.
Del has produced award winning work and has experience of working with the public sector and on large scale branding and design projects for clients such as Sport England, UK Athletics, Isle of Wight Council and Derbyshire Connected.