Design Bridge and Partners

Design Bridge and Partners is a global brand and design consultancy created in 2023 through the combination of Design Bridge and Superunion, two businesses within WPP’s international marketing-services portfolio. The firm works across brand strategy, identity, packaging, experience design, communications, naming, and related forms of corporate and consumer brand development. Its work is intended to help organizations define their positioning, express it consistently across physical and digital touchpoints, and manage brand systems across markets. The company’s immediate corporate history combines two distinct lineages. Design Bridge developed as an independent branding and design consultancy with an international presence, while Superunion was established in January 2018 when WPP brought together Brand Union, The Partners, Lambie-Nairn, Addison, and VBAT. The resulting organization inherited capabilities in corporate identity, packaging, retail and environmental design, digital experience, broadcast graphics, and brand strategy. In 2023, Superunion and Design Bridge were merged, creating the Design Bridge and Partners organization and extending the combined network’s global scale. A major historical strand within the business comes from Sampson Tyrrell, founded in London in 1976 by Terry Tyrrell and Sam Sampson. The firm began with work on British Gas’s corporate identity and later served clients including Kodak, Lowrey, the London Docklands Development Corporation, Legal & General, Citizen, Mazda, and Castrol. Dave Allen joined in 1984, and the company was acquired by WPP in 1986. This acquisition helped establish the corporate-design lineage that later passed through Enterprise IG and Brand Union. Another strand came from Robinson Lambie-Nairn, founded in 1976 by Colin Robinson and Martin Lambie-Nairn. In 1992, Brand Union and Robinson Lambie-Nairn partnered to broaden their work beyond traditional branding and broadcast design. The wider Enterprise Identity Group, later known as Enterprise IG, was launched in 1996 in response to the increasingly international nature of brand management. It grew through organic expansion and acquisitions, including Lambie-Nairn & Company, Horniak and Canny, Springham Anderson, Brindfors Design, Winderlich Design, Brown KSDP, and The Identity Business. Enterprise IG became known as Brand Union in 2007. In 2018, Brand Union joined The Partners, Lambie-Nairn, Addison, and VBAT in the Superunion merger. Superunion was described as a global consultancy headquartered in London, with approximately 500 employees and 16 offices in the period before its combination with Design Bridge. The 2023 merger consolidated these historical capabilities under a new name rather than representing the launch of an entirely new design discipline. Design Bridge and Partners operates as part of WPP and is positioned to support organizations with complex, multi-market brand challenges. Its scope includes both strategic and executional work, from research and brand architecture through identity systems, packaging, environments, campaigns, and digital experiences. Publicly available reference material does not establish a separate stock listing, independent ownership structure, named founder, or a complete current executive roster for the merged entity.

Design Bridge and Partners was formed in 2023 through the merger of Design Bridge and Superunion. The organization therefore reflects several generations of branding and design consultancies that were progressively assembled within WPP. One of the most important predecessor businesses was Sampson Tyrrell, established in London in May 1976 by Terry Tyrrell and Sam Sampson. The firm’s first major opportunity came from an advertising agency assignment to help develop the corporate identity of British Gas. It subsequently worked for organizations including Kodak, Lowrey, the London Docklands Development Corporation, and Legal & General. By 1984, the business had grown to around ten employees and was handling a broad range of graphic-design assignments. Dave Allen joined that year and helped accelerate expansion through work for clients such as Citizen, Mazda, and Castrol. WPP acquired Sampson Tyrrell in 1986, after which the consultancy expanded substantially; by 1991 it employed more than 100 people in London. A related historical line developed around Robinson Lambie-Nairn, founded in 1976 by Colin Robinson and Martin Lambie-Nairn. In 1992, Brand Union and Robinson Lambie-Nairn partnered as a cross-platform entity, allowing work to extend beyond conventional corporate identity and broadcast design. During the same period, Sampson and Allen helped establish Enterprise Identity Group with Jim Johnson of Anspach Grossman Portugal, Flavio Gomez of Sidjakov Berman Gomez, and Miles Young of Ogilvy & Mather in Asia. The initiative responded to the globalization of international brands and included a network with activity in Hong Kong and Taiwan. The founding businesses were brought under the Enterprise IG name, launched in 1996, with Allen and Johnson serving as joint chief executives. Enterprise IG expanded through both internal growth and acquisitions. In 1999, it became the holding company for Lambie-Nairn & Company. It later acquired Horniak and Canny in Australia, Springham Anderson in Singapore, Brindfors Design in Stockholm, Winderlich Design in Hamburg, and Brown KSDP, whose operations added offices in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Amsterdam, and Paris. In 2001, Enterprise IG acquired The Identity Business in Ireland. These transactions helped create a network spanning multiple regional markets and increased the organization’s scale to more than 700 employees and 19 offices according to the historical account. Enterprise IG formally adopted the Brand Union name in October 2007. The network continued to incorporate capabilities associated with identity, brand management, packaging, and communications, while the Lambie-Nairn heritage maintained a strong connection to broadcast and motion design. In 2008, Martin Lambie-Nairn left Lambie-Nairn & Company. In January 2018, WPP combined Brand Union, The Partners, Lambie-Nairn, Addison, and VBAT to form Superunion. The new business was presented as a global brand and design consultancy headquartered in London. Before its subsequent merger, Superunion operated across 16 offices and employed approximately 500 people, according to the cited reference material. WPP announced in 2022 that Superunion would be combined with Design Bridge. The merger was completed in April 2023, and the combined organization began operating as Design Bridge and Partners. Its inherited capabilities cover brand strategy, identity, packaging, communications, digital experiences, environments, retail, and motion or broadcast design. The merger also continued WPP’s broader strategy of bringing complementary creative and design capabilities together within a global network. Public reference material does not provide a definitive list of current executives, a standalone listing, or detailed financial results for Design Bridge and Partners itself.

• 2023

  Design Bridge and Partners is formed

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  The merger is completed in April 2023, creating Design Bridge and Partners.

• 2022

  WPP announces the Design Bridge combination

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  WPP announces plans to merge Superunion with Design Bridge.

• 2018

  Superunion is created

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  Brand Union, The Partners, Lambie-Nairn, Addison, and VBAT merge to form Superunion within WPP.

• 2007

  Enterprise IG becomes Brand Union

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  The global identity and branding network formally adopts the Brand Union name.

• 2001

  Enterprise IG expands through acquisitions

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  The network acquires The Identity Business and incorporates additional offices and capabilities in several international markets.

• 1996

  Enterprise IG launches

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  The predecessor businesses are consolidated under the Enterprise IG name as international brand management becomes an increasingly important focus.

• 1992

  Brand Union and Robinson Lambie-Nairn partner

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  The partnership broadens the predecessor network’s ability to combine branding, identity, and broadcast-related design capabilities.

• 1986

  Sampson Tyrrell joins WPP

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  WPP acquires Sampson Tyrrell, supporting a period of accelerated growth and international development.

• 1976

  Sampson Tyrrell is founded

  [1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  Terry Tyrrell and Sam Sampson establish Sampson Tyrrell in London, beginning a corporate-identity and graphic-design lineage later associated with the WPP design network.

A global, strategy-led brand and design consultancy combining identity, packaging, experience, and communications capabilities for international organizations and complex brand portfolios.

• Consulting service

  Brand strategy and architecture

  The consultancy helps organizations define brand positioning, organize portfolios, clarify relationships between masterbrands and sub-brands, and establish principles for communicating consistently across markets and channels.

• Design consultancy

  Brand identity systems

  Identity work can include visual language, logos, typography, color, imagery, motion, verbal expression, guidelines, and implementation systems. The historical network’s corporate-identity heritage is one of the central capabilities carried into the merged organization.

• Packaging design

  Packaging and consumer-brand design

  Packaging and consumer-brand assignments connect positioning and identity to products encountered in retail and everyday use. Work may cover packaging architecture, portfolio systems, shelf impact, information hierarchy, and adaptation for different markets.

• Experience design

  Digital, retail, and experience design

  The combined consultancy also works across digital interfaces, customer journeys, environments, retail spaces, and other physical or interactive touchpoints, translating brand strategy into experiences rather than limiting the output to static identity assets.

• Motion design

  Motion and broadcast identity

  Capabilities inherited from the Lambie-Nairn lineage include motion, broadcast, and moving-image identity. These disciplines extend brand systems into television, video, digital motion, and other time-based media.

• 2022

  WPP announces the merger of Superunion and Design BridgeM&A

  Background

  The two WPP-owned businesses had overlapping but complementary capabilities in brand strategy, identity, design, packaging, and experience.

  Action taken

  WPP announced that Superunion and Design Bridge would be combined into a single organization.

  Aftermath

  The combination was completed in April 2023 and the new organization was named Design Bridge and Partners.

  Source

• 2018

  Formation of Superunion through a multi-agency mergerM&A

  Background

  WPP sought to combine several established branding and design businesses, including Brand Union, The Partners, Lambie-Nairn, Addison, and VBAT.

  Action taken

  The agencies were brought together under the Superunion name, creating a larger global brand and design consultancy.

  Aftermath

  Superunion became the immediate predecessor of Design Bridge and Partners and was described as operating from 16 offices with approximately 500 employees.

  Source

• 2023

  Design Bridge and Partners launches following Superunion merger[1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  M&A · Leadership change

  The planned combination was completed in April 2023, creating Design Bridge and Partners as the successor organization for the two businesses.

• 2022

  Superunion and Design Bridge to merge[1]Superunionen.wikipedia.org

  M&A

  WPP announced plans to combine Superunion and Design Bridge, bringing together two of its global brand and design consultancies.

1. 1Superunionen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Design Bridge and Partners official websitedesignbridge.com