Why We Design Differently: The Story Behind Northwest Brand Design
More Than Pretty Design
At Northwest Brand Design, we’re more than just pretty design. The core philosophy that sets us apart is that we believe in branding that’s both beautiful and functional.
I’m Dani Chambers, the Owner and Creative Director of NBD.
I’ve had a lifelong passion for design, not solely for artistic purposes but for creating things that work, provide function, and an end result. When I was in elementary school, I’d sketch out paper dolls and my own clothing designs to have toys during recess. In middle school, I used Microsoft Publisher to design my own fashion magazines. In high school, I served as yearbook editor-in-chief.
The throughline in all of this is: design is a tool for empowerment and clarity.
My early love for design was rooted in function and purpose. Now, while leading a creative team, my passion is for creating brands that work and feel aligned.
Let’s dive into the story behind NBD and how and why we design differently.
The Why: Building a Business to Support Other Builders
All brands have a founder’s story. These days, sharing that story is important to connect with your audience. So, here’s mine.
I was always keen on design with purpose, but I also come from a family of business owners.
My grandma was “Rosie the Riveter of the cable industry,” only she swapped denim for pearls and drank Manhattans. Over the years, I saw the work that goes in, the struggle, but also the pure sense of accomplishment building something you believe in that helps a community.
Coming from my family meant I always had the drive to be my own boss. I sought to create a brand that reflects my values, a brand that felt like me. I wanted to create systems that work for my creative process and the kinds of work I want to be doing with our clients. I desired to support clients who are building something meaningful, which is why I love working with other entrepreneurs, small businesses and nonprofits.
So, why do I do it?
NBD grew from a realization that many great people doing great work were underrepresented by their brands. I wanted to help with branding for mission-driven organizations, offering small business design services to boost storytelling in brand design.
In the beginning, I wanted to elevate my client’s brands. I know not everyone is able to have the design eye or intuitively know how to communicate things visually, so I wanted to work with businesses and organizations I believed in and help them elevate their brand to accurately represent their value.
I also wanted to make my client’s lives easier, making branding fun, taking massive to-do list items off of their plate, and then help their brand grow WITH them through ongoing partnership, design work, and marketing help.
Of course, I encountered early client pain points, including misalignment, DIY branding fatigue, and needing real support. But this is what inspired me to continue to put the work in, the struggle, and feel that pure sense of accomplishment because I believed in the vision and clients who are building something meaningful.
What Makes Branding Work?
NBD was established in 2018. Since then, I’ve learned so much about branding, logos, visuals, copy, and importantly, how to tell a brand’s story and resonate with audiences.
A successful brand is one that’s aligned with values, goals, and personality. I’ve always followed my gut feeling, when I can tell a brand is so aligned with everything you stand for, especially the feelings you want people to feel when they interact with it.
Just how NBD is my brand and represents my philosophy on design and purpose, the brand is an extension of the founder, especially for small businesses and nonprofits.
You can’t just chase trends or please the market—it has to feel true. EVERYTHING should come down to “does it fit the brand?” For a lot of businesses, especially small businesses, the brand is the founders and the mission. NBD’s resources include blogs dedicated to everything I’ve learned while growing and expanding this brand. Each month, we publish new posts to teach our clients all these things we’ve learned and continue to learn about brand alignment and effectiveness. Additionally, we offer quarterly freebies with complementary tools for your small business.
But the most important thing I’ve learned is this: Brands can’t just be tailored to speak to clients or customers, because it also has to represent something, or someone, real!
The NBD Difference: Strategy + Soul
What sets NBD apart, what makes us different, is that we believe in strategy and soul.
There needs to be a strategic foundation before visual design. I think for us we emphasize balance in all things, including a balance of beauty and usability. We start from the strategy and create a roadmap/plan that blends creativity, clarity, and authenticity, and then the creativity can flow from there.
But we definitely understand that there is an order of operations that is required for effective branding. We can’t just start with a beautiful idea or something that looks good, and then build a strategy around that.
We ask…
Does it appeal to clients?
Does it represent the brand and the decision makers of the organization/business?
Does it feel authentic and aligned?
Does it feel good?
Does it look good?
Without a strategy, a brand just wouldn’t be the most effective. All our designs come to life with real-world function, and aren’t just for aesthetics. (Although clients and their audiences do love the way our brands look!)
Branding should also be FUN. It should flow, and it should feel like an extension of you. Almost somatic how the brand decisions should align with your gut decisions. It should feel like a “yes.”
When we work with our clients, we make sure they know our values: community, making an impact one life at a time, quality, and authenticity.
In our work, we always emphasize collaboration, clarity, and community impact. When you hire us, we work with you, making sure your identity, voice, mission, and story shine through your brand. We create purpose-driven branding that aligns with values and branding that helps you grow and connect.
Who We Serve + How It Feels to Work With Us
We’re the design agency to choose to help small businesses and non-profits grow. We work with many businesses in health and wellness and/or therapeutic organizations, so we also deeply care about our clients, their customers/patients/clients, and creating brands that they feel excited about and help them grow and help more people.
At NBD, we love to work with mission-driven organizations, those whose goal it is to help their communities in big or small ways and who have heart behind their purpose. We also love to provide creative branding support for health and wellness organizations and non-profits, where the owner is beyond passionate about what they do and offer.
We want your excitement to be infectious. We love clients who are excited about their work and want a partner to match their energy.
Working with us is a fun, collaborative time. (I don’t want to toot our own horn too much, but we’ve been told our process is more fun than our clients were expecting!) And we are a team of Type 2 enneagram empaths, who want to help and be our clients’ biggest cheerleaders. We will be hype with you on the direction you want to take your brand and what you uniquely offer, and collaborate to design a brand that communicates that.
Importantly, we are also extremely organized and pay high attention to detail, so our projects are on-time, on-budget, and transparent throughout.
A Success Story Close to Home
One of my favorite success stories, which also is very much close to home, is helping build Insight Northwest Counseling and Insight Northwest Recovery with my husband.
Working with INC and INR gave us the opportunity to witness the real-world impact our work and these organizations are having on our community in Oregon, including increasing access to care. Being involved in every brand decision: strategy, design, marketing, continued growth, and watching them skyrocket in growth over the last 5 years has been incredible.
This is a transformation story I am definitely most proud of. It’s a story of branding and impact, branding that aligns perfectly with our values—community, making an impact one life at a time, quality, and authenticity. And NBD got the chance to help with real change in our Oregon community.
Branding done right doesn’t just look good — it drives real results.
Looking Ahead: Our Vision for the Future
At NBD, we’re always working on something new and exciting.
We introduced our first ever pro bono branding project in 2025, and have future expansion goals in mind for the coming year. We plan to continue and grow this program because not only do we want to give back to our community, but also make quality design and branding accessible to those who would otherwise not have the resources for custom work.
I hope our work elevates the businesses and organizations we believe in so they can have a larger impact and create a healthier community.
Our mission is for clients to see the value of an on-going partnership with us.
It isn’t about just designing something beautiful and intentional; we want the opportunity to shepherd your brand through and make it work for you. From on-going digital marketing partnership, being your go-to design team, and intimately understanding your brand and your direction as well as you do, NBD is your long-term partner, not a one-time service.
Let us elevate good work and help build a healthier, more beautiful world.
Let’s Build Your Aligned Brand
We’re an authentic branding agency here to help you give your brand the attention it deserves.
If you’re ready, now’s the time for aligned, strategic, joyful design with a team that wants to know you, work with you, and make sure your brand reaches your audience with purpose. We’re prepared to celebrate your wins with you, and we’ll definitely be as excited as you are.
