A note from our founder, @josh.chendesign: we just celebrated our 29th anniversary and have weathered our share of storms, but like many other small businesses find ourselves in uncharted territory. As we’re trying to stay flexible and innovative, we’ve come up with a new initiative called 4-4-4—a sprint-style offering of our services at a new price. Check out the details above and DM us to chat further. Hope you’re staying healthy and well.

Find @puristcollective online and in retail stores soon, and check out the rest of our case study through the link. #thisispurist

“CDA has been an incredible partner for us in bringing this brand to life. From day one, they dug deep to really understand what we were looking for. Their vast experience and depth of team talent, coupled with their thought-provoking partnership style, is rare and powerful.”—Cindy Feinauer, GM of Purist

Our team developed an enduring identity and comprehensive campaign that asserts quiet authority and a bold aesthetic to set @puristcollective apart in the competitive hydration market.

Our creative campaign to launch the Purist brand and its first release brought together CDA’s expertise in powerful ways. We provided integrated strengths in photography, video, messaging, and developed the identity and brand voice across print catalog, ads, trade show booth, and environmental graphics.

We established Purist’s distinctive voice amid the retail noise by crafting confident, personable copy.

The scope of our work with @puristcollective included extensive brand strategy. We conducted extensive competitive research, built in-depth customer personas, and lay the foundation for a brand identity grounded in the natural world with a contemporary, urban point of view.

“It’s gratifying to bring shape to visionary ideas and collaborate with similarly-minded individuals who hold to high standards of quality. We’ve laid the groundwork and can’t wait to see Purist’s reputation take off and this brand we created, out in the wild.” —@tracywhitetaylor, Design Director

To elevate the product for various consumer environments, we created a minimalist packaging system for all bottles and lids.

Our partnership with @puristcollective began last year—we were tasked with launching a comprehensive visual identity for Purist to debut their exceptional water bottles, and are thrilled to see the results of our work come to life.

These limited edition flasks of @venusspirits' Wayward Whiskey were a fun project we wrapped up before the holiday season. The size makes them perfect for on-the-go adventures.

Work in progress: we're currently re-designing a website for a client of ours who deeply values the creative process. We created these graphic elements to represent multiple forms of artistry, exploring the messiness and imperfection that comes with every creative endeavor. Excited to share more soon.

A little late to the #nationalcoffeeday party, but that doesn't mean we love (or need) coffee any less. Cheers to the many delightful coffee clients we've worked with in the past!

Produced and directed new lifestyle photography for @johnmastersorganics' seasonal campaigns. Swipe through to see some of our favorites! Photographer: @annabelle_breakey, props + styling: @nissa.q. #perfectlynaturalbeauty

Located in the heart Southern Belize, @copaltreelodge is an award-winning and world-class destination focused on sustainability, community, and quality. We designed a comprehensive brand system including custom illustrations, typography, and color palette that captures a sense of place and evokes wanderlust.

We've had the pleasure of working with @masonsofca on over 30 issues of their bimonthly magazine. For every edition, our team creates custom illustrations, spanning themes of fatherhood to brotherhood for the modern mason.

For @puristcollective’s launch at #OutdoorRetailer, we designed a booth experience to seamlessly introduce the Purist brand and new products to attendees. Our goal was to make the Purist booth stand out amongst competitors, taking into consideration every brand touchpoint, from the music to the catalog to the wardrobe, as well as to create an optimal space for potential customers and visitors to interact with the product and the team. Swipe through to see our entire process.

We donated our creative services to the sucess of this year's Auction Napa Valley, and are thrilled with the results. Take a further look through the link in our bio. #chendesign #auctionnapa (3/3)

On the heels of the region’s devastating wildfires, we wanted to surprise and delight guests with renewed optimism and restrained elegance for Auction Napa Valley. Take a further look through the link in our bio. #chendesign #auctionnapa (2/3)

On the heels of the region’s devastating wildfires, we wanted to surprise and delight guests with renewed optimism and restrained elegance for Auction Napa Valley. Take a further look through the link in our bio. #chendesign #auctionnapa (2/3)

For the second consecutive year, we were honored to create the suite of materials for Auction Napa Valley, an incomparable celebration that annually benefits local disadvantaged families. Take a further look by clicking through the link in our bio. #chendesign #auctionnapa (1/3)

A new video project featuring @johnmastersorganics' Honey & Hibiscus Reconstructor, created by our stellar team. Video by @thayerandco, HMU by @scf.hmu, prop styling by @enmprops, modeling by @sydneysua. #chendesign

The Laurel Inn is a boutique hotel in the charming Pacific Heights neighborhood in SF with strong mid-century modern sensibilities. We had the opportunity to build a new brand identity system, which included exploring and creating custom typography for the logo. Read through our lead designer's thoughts behind the concept below and swipe left to see more photos! - "I wanted to create something quiet and refined, elegant and practical. Instead of scrapping the previous mark concept (a laurel), I thought it would be nice to simplify the icon to something more symbolic, less illustrative. In contrast to the organic mark, the letters are angular (referring to the exterior) and funky — the contrast of the letters flares in a way that alludes to common shapes in mid-century culture."—@yehoshuawhite #chendesign

Want an in-depth look at one of our designer's creative process? @kimberlylow is currently crafting a cover for our client @samuelmerrittu’s Report to the Community—she started with a digital mockup and is now building the cover in paper by hand using a xacto knife, bookbinding glue, and tape. The theme for this year's report is the “dimensionality of who we serve and the human interactivity of community, teaching, technology,” so Kim chose paper as a medium to convey dimensionality, depth, and texture in a way that a flat illustration can't. Stay tuned to see the final cover and product of Kim's hard work! #ChenDesign

The #ChenDesign library nook—where we have impromptu team huddles, find inspiration on the shelves, and take in the best view of the Fox Theater marquee.

Part of the creative process at #ChenDesign: sketching out our vision of the perfect product shot with trusty pencils and paper.

Despite reports to the contrary, print is alive! Check out our new book covers for Cengage Learning. #Print #Design #Lettering #chendesign

#poster #design for @espressoparts #TNTNW by #chendesign

sneak peek // july 2015 #chendesign #design #branding work in progress for clients old and new