Insights & Resources

This is where we share our experience, insights and expertise.

We believe in sharing our expertise and insights around our process and how this helps our clients to shape cohesive brand experiences. We typically write about brand strategy, interior design, design thinking and also create downloadable resources and guides.

What is a Rebrand?

Published on 23rd May| By Holly Horton, In Brand Design

Sometimes, businesses reach a point where they feel like they are at a standstill, or like they have lost the passion for their business and so they start thinking about starting a whole new business. This can happen for both large and small businesses. The great thing is though, it is possible though to take...

Read More

Is The Dishoom Restaurant Brand Head & Shoulders Above The Rest? We Think So & Here’s Why!

Published on 3rd May| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design, Interior Design

From Bombay with Love is the delicious tagline of the distinguished restaurant Dishoom, that burst onto the London restaurant scene in 2010, opening in Covent Garden. Since then it has opened a further 8 locations, including ones in Manchester, Edinburgh and Birmingham. As we delve further into the Dishoom Restaurant brand story, you’ll see why...

Read More

Why Is Branding Important to a business?

Published on 28th September| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design

If you’ve read a few of our blog posts you should have a good understanding of what a brand or brand strategy is, this post will delve into the importance of branding, and how it affects your business. Branding is important to areas of your business you probably haven’t even identified yet. Below will help...

Read More

What is Brand Strategy? The Ultimate Guide!

Published on 20th September| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design

The topic around the value of a brand strategy, and what it provides is vast, as are the ways in which it elevates your business. Any business owner that is serious about the success of their business, and outperforming their competitors needs to start thinking ‘brand first’. A clear and well thought out brand strategy...

Read More

What is a Brand Consultant?

Published on 28th July| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design

We are going to take a deeper look at the role of brand consultants, how they can help your business and some of the key things that must be considered when hiring a brand consultant. We look at how brand consultants can impact your business, marketing efforts and ultimately how they can support you to...

Read More

Brand Strategy For Hospitality Businesses

Published on 21st July| By Nimesh Shetty, In Brand Design, Interior Design

Introduction  In a digitally conscious world, the word ‘brand’ has become an established term with every sector and industry. Brand and branding have been an over consuming buzz word in recent times. Studies have shown that millennial’s and Gen Z are more influenced by the “why” of a brand than by the “what” of a...

Read More

London’s Most Instagrammable Cafes

Published on 19th July| By Holly Horton, In Brand Design, Interior Design

London is one of the most vibrant cities in the world with a bursting hospitality scene, so it pays to stand out. As humans we experience everything with our eyes first, and in an ever-expansive digital age, we like to capture our experience with pictures perfect for social media. This means, that when people are...

Read More

An Introduction to Retail Interior Design

Published on 13th July| By Charlie Farrar, In Interior Design

Within the commercial interior design sector there are a few different types of interior design practices, each taking a slightly different approach depending on the style of venue. For example, hospitality interior design, retail design and workplace design all fall under this commercial interior umbrella but all have different needs when it comes to the...

Read More

Restaurant Interior Design Ideas

Published on 8th July| By Nimesh Shetty, In Interior Design

Have you ever wondered what makes a restaurant experience so memorable? Or what makes the leading restaurant brand in your city more successful than its competitors? Well, the obvious answers would be the food and service. However if you look closely there is an intensive design driven process which binds the tangible and intangible brand...

Read More

The Most Important Aspects of Cafe Interior Design

Published on 5th July| By Charlie Farrar, In Interior Design

Cafe Interiors  Taking time to create a well considered cafe design concept which encompasses not only a great interior design but a strong brand ethos will ensure that when you open the doors to your cafe you are best positioned for success. It’s easy to assume that opening a cafe is about sourcing great food,...

Read More

Brand Communication Strategy: Everything You Need To Know!

Published on 4th July| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design

Brand Communication Strategy – Is poor brand communication impacting your business growth? When it comes to brand communication there are typically two key characteristics or traits that we see especially in founders or executives when talking about their brand. Example 1: ‘Too much information’: The person who literally wants to tell you everything! And we...

Read More

Successful Coffee Shop Design | 10 steps to opening a new coffee shop

Published on 28th April| By Charlie Farrar, In Interior Design

Anyone can create a basic interior design concept but crafting a coffee shop design concept that is going to be successful and stand the test of time takes careful consideration across multiple aspects. Customers want more, they are longing to engage and connect with brands that genuinely align with their values so how do you...

Read More

How To Design A Coffee Shop – Our Process

Published on 14th March| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Interior Design

An insight into our 360 brand process | The Collective This insight will showcase the behind the scenes development of our latest Coffee Shop project. Discover what it takes to turn an idea into a cohesive and memorable hospitality brand. From initial brand strategy, through the design process, right up to the interior visualisation stage, this...

Read More

Bar Design Guide | How to Design a Commercial Bar Interior

Published on 19th January| By Charlie Farrar, In Interior Design

In this guide, we will provide you with all the information you need to know about Bar Design. We will cover the basics and explore some of the most common questions when it comes to commercial bar design. Want to know how to go about opening your own bar? You’re in the right place. The...

Read More

5 things to consider when designing a Restaurant

Published on 20th December| By Charlie Farrar, In Interior Design

What is the secret to creating a memorable Restaurant experience? Creating a successful restaurant design is challenging enough and striking a balance between great food, a memorable experience and a beautiful interior is hard. A misconception is that the reputation of a restaurant is solely based on its food offering, however it’s so much more...

Read More

A Guide to Commercial Interior Design

Published on 24th November| By Charlie Farrar, In Interior Design

In this guide we will provide you with all the information you need to know about commercial interior design. We will cover the basics and explore some of the most common questions, as well as go into more depth on the commercial interior design process and share insights on successful case studies. What are Commercial...

Read More

Commercial Interior Spaces For Hospitality

Published on 6th October| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Interior Design

Commercial Interior Design Interior design is responsible for the planning, design and implementation of interior concepts into spaces across many sectors including residential, medical, entertainment, educational, professional and commercial. Each one of the above sectors can be broken down into specific areas and we are going to take a closer look at the commercial design...

Read More

Hospitality Interior Design – Instagramable Interiors

Published on 13th September| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Interior Design

Neat Burger – Princes Street | London One of Grey Coffee’s most recent trips took us to London and specifically to Neat Burger. Having discovered this brand on Instagram months back we have been keeping up to date with their social content and learning more about the brand online. Having first engaged with the brand...

Read More

Hospitality Interior Insights – Bar-Restaurant Design

Published on 30th August| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Interior Design

The Anthologist St Peter’s Square – Manchester.Grey Coffee took a research day out in Manchester and one of the key hospitality spaces we wanted to check out was The Anthologist – St Peter’s Square. Having seen Drake and Morgans work we were excited to see how the brand had put their stamp on their 2nd...

Read More

Interior Design For Hospitality: Coffee Shop Interior Design Ideas

Published on 14th June| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Interior Design

Coffee Shop Interior Design Ideas | Part 1 Interior design for hospitality essentially is a process that should consist of three things, brand strategy, brand identity and interior architecture. You may be refurbishing your interior, rebranding or creating a new coffee shop brand… whichever category you fall under, as a hospitality brand you should take...

Read More

Does brand strategy and design influence the choices we make as consumers?

Published on 21st May| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design, Interior Design

The coffee shop industry has been enjoying substantial growth over the past decade, resulting in the high street coffee giants popping up in most UK towns. An incredible benefit of the booming coffee industry is that independent, local coffee shops are also thriving. Coffee culture is real, and it isn’t going anywhere, many coffee drinkers...

Read More

Coffee Shop Design

Published on 30th April| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Interior Design

Coffee Culture The coffee industry has gained traction in recent years, coffee drinking has developed into ‘coffee culture’ and is a part of so many daily routines. But let’s be honest grabbing a coffee isn’t just about drinking a lovely brewed coffee anymore is it? Coffee shops are the ‘go to’ environment for a variety...

Read More

Restaurant Interior Design and Connected Brand experience

Published on 23rd April| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design, Digital Transformation, Interior Design

There’s nothing that inspires us more than to design a restaurant interior.  There are many factors to consider when designing a restaurant and it’s often a fine balancing act to get it completely right.  The key things that usually need to be considered for restaurant interior design are as follows:  In a post pandemic world...

Read More

What is brand strategy and connected brand experience?

Published on 31st March| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design, Digital Transformation

Connected brand experience is the ability to shape consistent experiences across all customer touch points. At Grey Coffee we really believe that your customers’ brand experience starts way before they interact with any brand touch point and lasts long after that initial experience.   Understanding how and where customers interact with your brand is critical...

Read More

Connected Brand Experience

Published on 18th March| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Digital Transformation, Interior Design

Connected Brand Experience In a digital first world with a developing ‘instant’ culture, every interaction customers have with brands leaves a lasting effect, whether that be positive or negative. Engaging with a company is no longer just about the physical experience of buying a product or service it’s so, so much more than that. A...

Read More

What is a brand strategy workshop?

Published on 10th March| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design

Making time for a brand strategy workshop can certainly seem like a pressure when planning to undertake any brand development work. One of the biggest objections we often get is “how long is it going to take?”. We get it you’re busy, but until you start making time for your brand and building clarity it’s...

Read More

Restaurant Brand and Interior design

Published on 4th March| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Interior Design

Understanding the importance of customer connection in a post pandemic world is vital for most businesses in 2021, but for the hospitality industry it might be pretty overwhelming to know where to start. Many businesses will be gearing up to reopen and to get back to ‘normal’ come the summer, but it may not prove...

Read More

Build a Brand Strategy – Free Brand Strategy Template

Published on 26th February| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design, Downloads

If you’ve landed at our blog it is highly likely you have started to explore the subject of brand or brand strategy and have recognised the potential it has to transform your business. There are many theories of what brand is and what brand isn’t so it’s important we start with an understanding of the...

Read More

Brand Interiors: Highly Branded Interior Experiences 

Published on 8th February| By Charlie Farrar, In Brand Design, Digital Transformation, Interior Design

Understanding ‘Branded Interior Experiences’ Often overlooked, Brand Interior Experience is the key link between a brands identity, their physical environment and their customer. It’s the difference between a space just being designed to look nice and a space that is designed with brand purpose.  Tangible & intangible | Essentially, when creating a brand interior experience...

Read More

Brand Matters – January

Published on 31st January| By Duncan Milne, In Monthly Newsletter

Featured in Brand Matters this month: Why brands need to be more authentic in 2021!  Our newest member of the Grey Coffee team Charlie shares her experience joining Grey Coffee during a global pandemic. We also take a look at what is happening over on our Instagram account, our favourite book this month and more news...

Read More

Calling All App Developers

Published on 4th November| By Duncan Milne, In Digital Transformation

Calling all App developers we are currently on the hunt for some new talent to support us with existing and new projects we have coming up in the studio. We are looking for mid-level App developers that have experience building native Apps for iOS or Android. Required Skills (iOS): Strong experience in iOS Development in...

Read More

Review : Mackie Mayor

Published on 16th June| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design, Interior Design

One of the many reasons we love Manchester is its diversity and f&b scene. The food and beverage scene (f&b) is constantly developing and we find ourselves always uncovering new streets, bars and hidden gems, whenever we visit. Mackie Mayor was recommended to us by a friend, so when we had an afternoon spare we...

Read More

User Experience & Understanding Your Customer

Published on 25th April| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design, Digital Transformation

As consumers we are constantly interacting with brands all of the time, sometimes consciously and at other times subconsciously. User experience or ‘UX’ is a term that designers use when reviewing a website, app/interface basically any experience when interacting with a brand online. The result when design has considered the user is absolute bliss, a...

Read More

Why Brand Matters

Published on 9th April| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design

Why Brand Matters? The term brand is literally flying around everywhere, we can’t go more than 10 minutes in the studio with someone not mentioning brand, phone rings and yep you’ve guessed it, a client wants to talk about brand, we log on to social media and there it is splattered everywhere, ‘brand this’, ‘brand...

Read More

The latest Google release and what does it mean for our search rankings?

Published on 27th March| By Duncan Milne, In Digital Transformation

Google have recently confirmed that they made an update to the Google Search algorithm. The update has been labelled as a ‘broad core search ranking algorithm update’. As a result of this update some website owners are suggesting that their search rankings have been negatively affected. Unfortunately, it would seem that if your rankings have...

Read More

Let’s Talk Brand

Published on 15th March| By Duncan Milne, In Brand Design

FITISM: Brand Identity. Over the last few years there is no doubt that people these days are generally more informed and certainly have a much better understanding of the term brand. This post will explore how you can challenge your own brand and hopefully understand further why brand is an integral part to any successful...

Read More