Capitol

Moving into modern

Timeline

Summer 2024
10 Weeks

Tools

Figma
Adobe Suite

Type

Co-Op

The Big Question

How can I do this in 2 months?

A local business needed a complete brand refresh, including a new logo, print materials, emails, and web design. I approached this project with a goal-oriented mindset, breaking tasks into clear milestones with estimated completion times.

Research was a continuous process. I worked to understand the users, market, and company. As the sole designer, I took full ownership, balancing creative exploration with the responsibility of delivering an effective brand identity.

Main Spheres of Work

1 - Logo Development
2 - Research and Strategy
3 - Brand Assets and Style Guides
4 - Templates
5 - Website Design

A note:

In this case study, I will be summarizing Logo, some Brand Assets, and Website Design

Logo

Refining, not redefining

The goal for the logo was to maintain the isometric style while aligning it with competitors use of strong lines. Capitol wanted the design to feel grounded with “less confusing lines.”

For the type, I chose Neue Haas Grotesk and experimented with weight and leading, creating a custom silhouette. We refined the design over three rounds

check out 4 of the 24+ iterations

Seeing in color

The directive was to create a commanding blue, opposite from Red - which was seen as warm and inflammatory. Their main product point was their products kept places much cooler.

I chose pantone colors that matched their Canva guide and created a new styleguide with hex, CMYK and pantone codes

Print

Design in sync

The team worked door-to-door, finding buildings and people in need of their services. Print components had to seamlessly align together to create a cohesive, professional set that worked as hard as the team did.

Business Card

The business card got a refresh!

It was exciting getting to complete every aspect of it from photos to iconography.

Main Cover
Sales Team
Promotion
Specialized Jobs
Information

Brochure

The brochure was something new the company introduced.

It was exciting getting to complete every aspect of it from photos to iconography.

Outside Brocure
Inside Brochure
Website

A simpler experience for communication

The website's primary goal was to simplify and enhance communication. They wanted to keep the main flow of the brand. Throughout the process, I asked myself and the team key questions, allowing me to design a site that felt both familiar and more precise

Who are the key users?

Key users fell into two distinct groups: building owners (who focused on the final aesthetic & visual) and contractors (who needed product specs

Balancing these needs to create a website that resonated with both groups was a unique challenge.

A note:

I included the old website to highlight which elements were intentionally retained, which were left behind, and why

Introducing the home page

It was important to not lose the basic concept of the website; products had to stay as categories.

We deicded to add the new tagline "Window & Door Specialists - design, manufacture, install" because Capitol is one of the few Ohio plants that does it all!

OLD DESIGN

The old home page had no introduction. It was the products only. It didn’t give users time to orient or understand the company.

The Product Page

A split screen to show the products and benefits for the buyers, with specs and colors for the engineers

It was important to give each page its own room to breathe

OLD DESIGN

The old page had small images and text, with too much information.

A few pages more...

In total, I designed 13 interactive pages. Want to see? Email axh2451@rit.edu

Conclusion

Research & Prioritize

Being the sole designer in a room full of engineers and non-designers with limited time pushed me to learn and adapt quickly. I learned to balance confidently standing by my decisions while considering their perspectives on products, users, and the market

I gained valuable experience in research, competitive analysis, and communication. I found quick solutions, worked with existing resources, and articulated my process more effectively. This project broadened my perspective, introducing me to new ways of thinking and problem-solving!

Small businesses are the backbone of our community. I enjoyed being able to help them expand their business and gave me genuine joy in knowing it would solve their problems and help clients find their products more easily.

Thank you to Gail & Bonnie for making this co-op/internship fun!

Another story?
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Information Architecture. Branding.

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designed with love. version 1.1 published 05.2025