Most owners ask the same handful of questions before they hire anyone to touch their brand. The answers above cover price, contracts, ownership, timelines and the limits of what a studio does. Below is some context on the questions behind the questions.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost?
Studio work runs on Trades.Agency plans: $1,999, $3,999 or $7,999 a month, or $1,499, $2,999 or $5,999 a month on annual billing, plus GST/HST at your province's rate. Printing, vinyl and garments are paid to your suppliers directly.
Am I locked into a contract?
No. Plans are month to month with 30 days' notice to cancel. Annual billing is optional and simply lowers the monthly rate.
Who owns the logo and files?
You do. We hand over master vector files, colour values, font licensing notes and the brand rules. No supplier or designer should be the only holder of your logo.
Can you register my trademark?
No. We don't give legal advice or file applications. Search the Canadian Intellectual Property Office database and speak to a lawyer or registered trademark agent; we'll give you clean files and a record of the design to take with you.
Do you install vehicle wraps or print signs?
No. We design, prepare files and write specifications, then help you brief and check local suppliers. We are not a contractor, wrap shop or print shop.
How long does a rebrand take?
Design for a new identity is usually three to six weeks. Rolling it out across vehicles, apparel and print takes longer and is normally phased around lease cycles, reorders and your slow season.
We tried an agency before and got a logo we never used. Why would this be different?
Because we design on your real touchpoints from the start: the van side, the shirt chest, the map pin. If a concept doesn't work on those, it doesn't get presented. And we tell you what not to change.
Do I need to change my business name?
Rarely. A name only needs to change if it is confusing, too close to a competitor, tied to a person who has left, or limiting where you want to grow. Otherwise, a cleaner presentation of the same name keeps the recognition you've earned.
Can you work with my existing print shop or wrap installer?
Yes. We prefer it when you have a supplier you trust. We'll send them files in the format they need and a spec so the result matches the design.
How do you measure whether branding works?
With tracking numbers on vehicles and print, a 'how did you hear about us' question on every new call, branded search volume and Google Business Profile activity, compared against a baseline taken before launch.
Can you promise more calls?
No. Nobody can honestly promise that. We'll set clear measures and report on them so you can judge the return yourself.
Do you work outside BC?
Yes, across all ten provinces and three territories. We're based in Vancouver and consult by video call or in person, as well as by phone, text, email and shared files.
What about French for Quebec customers?
Quebec has French-language requirements for commercial advertising, signage and websites. We design with French in mind for Quebec work; confirm your obligations with the Office québécois de la langue française.
"Is this worth it for a company my size?"
For a one-truck operator, usually the answer is a small, focused fix: a clean logo file, a readable van layout and matching shirts. That costs far less in production than a full rebrand and does most of the work.
For a fleet of five or more, inconsistency becomes expensive. Every mismatched truck and shirt order is money spent on looking smaller than you are. That is where a proper identity and fleet master pay back. See the services overview for how to choose a starting point.
"What if I hate the design?"
You won't be asked to choose from a blank page. We show a small number of distinct directions, each applied to your actual vehicles and garments, so you are judging what customers will really see. Refinement rounds come after one direction is chosen.
If none of the directions is right, that usually means the brief was wrong, and we go back to it rather than producing endless variations. A strong discovery call at the start avoids most of this.
"What happens to my old stuff?"
A rebrand doesn't mean throwing everything away on day one. We help you plan the changeover: vehicles at lease renewal or when graphics wear, shirts at the next reorder, print when stock runs low. Online profiles and the website change first, because they're the cheapest to update and the most searched.
The rebrand rollout guide walks through the order and the budget.
"Who will I deal with?"
Your first call is with a senior strategist, and Ali Sedighi, MBA, leads the work. We're part of the Sedighi.ca and SAZ.ca group, headquartered in Vancouver, BC. Read about the studio for his background, and see the results from our HVAC work for published case studies.
"Why not just use the print shop's free design?"
Free design is built around the item being sold. It's usually fine for a single job, and plenty of good trades businesses started that way. The problem appears over time: each shop redraws your logo slightly differently, colours drift, and after a few years the van, the shirts and the yard sign look like three different companies.
A studio's job is to set the rules once, so every supplier works from the same files. That doesn't mean you stop using your print shop. It means the shop gets better instructions. Our print and signage service shows what those instructions include.
"How do I know the design will work on the road?"
We test it before anything is produced. Every vehicle concept is shown on the real template for your make and model, viewed at a reduced size to mimic distance, and checked in greyscale for contrast. Garment designs are checked at the actual stitch size. If a concept fails those tests, we fix it before you see it.
You can run the same tests yourself on any design you're offered. The wrap brief guide explains how.
"What does a typical first month look like?"
Week one is the consultation and a review of your current touchpoints. Weeks two and three are design directions on your real vehicles and garments. By the end of the month, most owners have chosen a direction and know exactly what will be produced first, at what cost to their suppliers.
Still have a question?
Call, text or email, and include your business name, your trade and your city. The contact page explains what to include so we can give you a useful answer on the first reply.