DBA Design Effectiveness Awards

The UK-wide agency scooped a top award at the DBA Design Effectiveness Awards on Tuesday (October 30).

Nearly 200 design consultancies from across Britain entered the awards, with 999 one of only three shortlisted in the visitor attractions category alongside leading London-based agencies Haley Sharpe Design and The Holmes Wood Consultancy.

999 Design co-founder Richard Bissland collected the accolade at a glittering ceremony organised by the Design Business Association and held at the exclusive Hurlingham Club in West London.

Established in 1989, the DBA Design Effectiveness Awards recognise, reward and promote the integral role design plays in the creation of business growth. Designers and agencies must submit detailed information about commercial results which demonstrate the direct impact of successful design in relation to their project.

Awarded across 12 categories including corporate and brand identity, product and packaging, interior, print and point of sale, they are the global benchmark of commercial effectiveness and are highly regarded as the design industry's 'Oscars'.

999 Design was appointed as the lead creative agency tasked with brand creation and implementation for the 2006 Glasgow Mackintosh festival, which celebrated the heritage of renowned Scottish architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh throughout the year and attracted over 638,000 visitors to venues across the city.

After establishing the festival logo and key messaging, 999 brought the event to life across multiple communication channels including outdoor media, the creation of a website offering extensive information on more than 100 exhibitions and an eye-catching advertising display using 13 of department store Frasers' windows in the city centre.

Deborah Dawton, chief executive of the Design Business Association (DBA), said: 'Successful projects require the integration of the design brief with business aims and objectives from the outset. In winning this award, 999 clearly demonstrated the excellent value for money that a coherent, well-thought out and professionally executed design strategy can achieve. More clients should demand this level of return on investment from their design consultancies.'