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Further and faster than the competition: design transformation in motion
“Not so long ago I thought design was simply about how something looked, now I see how it can have an effect on every aspect of a business.” Judith Stracey, Chairman, White Logistics
In 2010 White Logistics had suffered in the recession and had failed to show profits for a few years. A strategic rebrand was commissioned to help the business grow.
Working with agency The Allotment, White Logistics developed a brand proposition and identity that would, says Stracey, “communicate our drive, passion and levels of service not only externally but also to employees.” The new brand and livery reflected White Logistics’ values and started telling the story of how it solved problems for customers. 
Says Stracey, “We started to use design effectively throughout the company”, and the results have been transformational, reinvigorating and turning around the fortunes of the company. Turnover has increased by 65% in the six years since the rebrand, and profits by 70%. The original investment in design was just £50,000. Based on sales increase that shows a return on initial investment of 1:79.
Judith is at the heart of the White’s story. The company was just two years old when she joined founder Rick White in 1974. She was company secretary by 1984 and Finance Director by 1996, before buying out the business in 2002.
Her own rise has mirrored the rise of the business itself from a small distributor of local fruit and veg to the national logistics and storage business it is today. She knows the business inside out and has had a singular impact on the unique culture and passion for problem solving which it’s become famous for.
Hear from White Logistic’s Judith Stracey
Design: driving transformation in business
Join us on Thursday 12 October, at this free event for DBA members, where we’ll be bringing together design leaders from business and consultancy to explore how to embed design across every business function to harness its transformative power.
The event will take a comprehensive look at how design can drive transformation in business, unpacking the value added when design is effectively embedded in an organisation’s practise.
Judith will discuss designers’ role in business, along with her fellow panellists from Royal Bank of Scotland and Heineken International, together delving into how designers can influence and change the perceptions of design in the businesses they work in.
Other speakers at the event include:
- Ron Burrage, Sr. Director, Head of Global Design, The Hershey Company
- Mark van Iterson, Director Global Heineken Design, Heineken International
- Louise Smith, Head of Design and Transformation, Royal Bank of Scotland
- Mark Curtis, Founder and Chief Client Officer, Fjord
- Jon Denham, Vice President Disruptive Innovation & Design, ConAgra Foods
- François Lenfant, General Manager Healthcare Experience, Global Design at GE Healthcare
- Judith Stracey, Chairman, White Logistics
- Oliver King, Director/Founder, Engine Service Design
- Jeremy Bassinder, Exec Partner – Consumer Products & UKI iX Leader for Consumer Products, Retail and Travel & Transport, IBM
Further information and book
The event will be hosted at Imagination in central London, taking place between 10.30 and 17.30 on 12 October. See the full event agenda, speaker line-up and details of how to reserve your place, here.
Read White Logistic’s Gold winning DBA Design Effectiveness Award case study here.