Exterior render of Canopy workspace building

A new creative co-working destination in central Leicester. Built for independent businesses, cultural organisations and people working at the edge of creativity, enterprise and innovation.

Services

  • Naming
  • Brand Strategy
  • Brand Identity
  • Creative Direction
  • Wayfinding Design

Industry

  • Space & Place
  • Creative Industries

Canopy is a cultural and co-working space in Leicester, bringing five historic buildings together with a new shared purpose. Shaped by a history of making and innovation, the site has been reimagined as a place for a new generation of independent businesses, cultural organisations and creative communities to meet, grow and become part of something.

Tasked with naming, brand strategy, visual identity and wayfinding, we built a vibrant flagship destination for the city. The name lends the brand its central idea: different histories, spaces and people brought together through one shared identity.

That identity now supports a 34,000 sq. ft building, home to 30 businesses with generous shared spaces for collaboration, events and cultural activity: giving Canopy the confidence to operate as both a serious place of work and a lively, open platform for the city.

A flagship space for work, culture and shared ideas, built for independent businesses, creative teams and those making a new home in the city.
Canopy construction hoarding featuring photographs of the workspace and people
Internal screen campaign poster for Canopy using the identity design
Canopy vertical wordmark applied to the brickwork of the chimney
The name turns a repurposed collection of buildings into a shared idea. Different people, practices and ambitions, all growing together.
Canopy brand identity device shown across a series of applications
The identity builds around the concept of a living structure, adapting across each application, while staying rooted in the same core idea.
The identity was inspired by the blueprint of the original five buildings coming together, taking the shapes and forms of the building and reworking them into the brand device. As an intentionally minimalist brand, the interiors played an important role in creating desirability for tenants — natural woods, concrete and exposed cabling trays are enhanced through furniture, finishes and wayfinding. The brand palette and typography were inspired by the environment, supporting the raw nature of the building’s architecture.
A Canopy tote bag handing on a chair in the workspace
Canopy lightbox signage within the workspace
The wayfinding system was designed to sit naturally within the building’s industrial character. Signage was crafted from sanded white Perspex slabs, with routed, hand-filled lettering mounted to custom powder-coated railings. Lightboxes followed the 'Living Structure' device that flows throughout the building, extending the identity across window vinyls, room markers, directional signage, social media and the wider digital presence.
Mobile layout design for the Canopy Cowork website
A desktop layout for the Canopy Cowork website
Mail us
+44 (0) 116 380 0365
Unit 15, Stoughton Grange
LE2 2FB, UK