Nothing ventured, nothing gained

Developing a brand for a cyber-focused venture studio

  • Brand strategy
  • Naming
  • Verbal identity
  • Visual identity
A man looking at a file in front of a laptop in a dark room

Your ultimate wingman

The client: SIDEKICK

The UK’s cyber industry is set to soar. Around the nation, startups are out there grafting and getting ready to take their businesses to the next level. The problem is, 90% of startups fail. A lot of the time, they have the talent, but not the business know-how.

The Moment of Change: Changing the game

That’s where venture studios come in – venture studio-founded companies are a whopping 30% more likely to succeed. Cybersecurity expert and entrepreneur Martyn came to us with a solid plan, but needed some Mighty brand expertise to get the studio up and running.

The plan we made

Seeing as the studio needed to move quickly to start getting funding consideration, we had to get our skates on and start coming up with ideas fast.
 
First, it needed a name. We thought long and hard about what a venture studio offers to startups and scaleups, and we realised that the one thing that really drives programmes like that is where worlds collide. It’s taking the big idea from one place and giving it the muscle to build it – finding the sweet spot.

We know that every founder should be the hero of their story, but of course, no hero stands completely alone. Batman has Robin. Superman has Krypto. Wonder Woman has Wonder Girl. Someone to give them the push to be faster, stronger, better.
 
And that’s where SIDEKICK came from – giving founders the capital, strategy and creative firepower to build what others can’t.
 
Once we had the name, the second port of call was developing a master brand. It was also going to be in conversation with potential backers and supporters, so it needed a strong one-pager and pitch deck to explain the vision with power and precision.

The story we told

The visual identity was key to this – we wanted SIDEKICK to be able to stand tall amongst the tech startups and look aspirational for any businesses that were looking for funding and support. Not to mention, Martyn loves a branded t-shirt!
 
We came up with a slick S that incorporated a X symbol – two distinct shapes brought together to indicate the partnership that SIDEKICK brought to each prospective venture. The X marks the sweet spot and was perfect for making patterns with. And when paired with a vibrant green and black? You simply can’t miss it.
 
We developed the one-pager and pitch deck in this style, with lots of iconography and diagrams to help bring it to life and illustrate exactly what SIDEKICK are planning. With a versatile design system, there was plenty of scope for motion and standout graphics – everything the studio needed to get started.

The Mighty change

The new SIDEKICK brand has been instrumental in helping the studio to build their case with key partners and stakeholders. Everything SIDEKICK create has an infectious energy and enthusiasm, and our brand provides the perfect way to bolster that. Call it a SIDEKICK’s sidekick, if you will.

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