Rove Creative

Name: Rove Creative
Address: South Brisbane, QLD, 4101, AU
Telephone: +61460830243
Price range: $$
Rating: 5

We empower businesses to charge more and get noticed through brand strategy and visual identity design. We’ll ensure you stand out to your roving customers.
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Are you in the business of creating incredible memories for your customers? At Rove, we work with businesses like yours, in the tourism, hospitality, events and activities sectors, to increase sales by showcasing your business. We do this through effective logo, website and graphic design. Rove Creative is an independent design studio in Brisbane, Australia, founded by Kate Smith. Kate is a roving

graphic designer with a passion for salsa dancing, a penchant for wine, and a love of all things design.

16/07/2026

Is a smile a part of your brand? Seriously, hear me out (spoiler: I'm not going to tell you it should be)

How do you want people to
FEEL
when they work with you?

Ponder that for a moment.

Because most people won't remember what you said.
But they will remember how you made them feel.

That's why they rave about you.
That's why they refer you.

Or it's why they don't.

I've branded businesses that want to feel like a warm hug.
And ones that want to feel like a steel trap (see, no smile 😠)

Very different vibe!

How do your clients need to feel when they work with you?

And when they see/hear/experience your brand, is that the feeling it shows?

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Rove rebrands professional service businesses that are doing big things, but still look small. If you've got pricing friction, not landing clients you should be, or your marketing spend seems to fall flat. It's probably not a value problem, it's a perception problem.

Message me for a free brand clarity assessment.

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P.S.: Do you know Cominos? Does he make you smile or cry? Let me know in the comments 😂

13/07/2026

Last week I got to visit Rove client Rise Design Studio. With us they developed a new name, new strategy, new visual identity. The works!

Formerly The Little Shop of Colours, Rise was struggling to speak to their ideal clients. We started talking and a few things were clear:

- To target the architects, builders and developers messaging needed to change.
- To look like a serious B2B designer, rather than a small B2C operation the look required an update.
- And overall, the name was no longer representing them. They were not small and they were not decorators dealing with colours. It was sending the wrong message.

Rise speaks to the architects, builders and developers who are raising buildings from nothing.

The more somber colour palette sets the tone for serious business.

The elegant monogram still lets you know there's a creative soul in the business.

What do you think, good change?

08/07/2026

I am running a mini brand workshop LIVE at Bx Springfield Lakes as the xcite presenter tomorrow.

I want you to take home a way to differentiate your business from everyone else in your industry. And you don't need to be a designer to use this.

If you're a member, I'd love to see you there. If you've never been to Bx, hit me up and I'll hook you up with free entry (and breakfast to boot).

02/07/2026

Sometimes, the right brand feels “wrong” at first.

A client recently pushed back on the typography in their new brand.

One font felt too loose and handwritten for headings.

The heading font felt too plain. Too boring.

And honestly? I understood the reaction.

Their old brand was decorative, feminine and detailed. They had spent years looking at it, using it and associating it with their business.

The new brand is different.

It’s more grounded. More modern. More gender-neutral.

It says:

"We’ll handle it, so you don't have to."

That shift to "boring" wasn’t accidental.

They’re targeting a different kind of client now. They need to communicate confidence and the end of decision fatigue. They also need to stand apart from an industry full of brands using the same pretty, polished visual language.

So yes, compared with the old brand, parts of the new identity are less decorative.

They may even be more boring.

But “more interesting” wasn’t the brief.

𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀.

This is one of the hardest parts of transformation.

You cannot become the next version of your business while holding tightly to every visual cue from the last one.

A rebrand asks you to let go of what feels familiar so the business can be perceived differently.

And familiarity has a sneaky way of disguising itself as good taste.

The old brand felt comfortable because it was known.

The old brand 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥.

But it wasn’t doing the job the business now needed it to do.

Good brand design isn’t about making every element shout for attention. It’s about giving each element a role and building the right overall perception.

Transformation often feels uncomfortable before it feels exciting.

Sometimes the most strategic choice won’t give you an instant dopamine hit.

But it walks into the room, rolls up its sleeves and gets to work.

That’s what you’re paying for.

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Transformation is one of Rove Creative’s core brand beliefs, shaping how we think, create and help businesses move forward.

This series explores the beliefs behind our brand personality, and shows how those deeper ideas influence the words, visuals and experiences people associate with a business.

30/06/2026

This is the thing I could talk about all day: fonts.

Or typefaces as us word nerds would say.

Fonts are fascinating. Each has a history and a reason for being. From the very first serif fonts used in printing presses to modern types developed specifically for screens.

Some are built for readability, or to assist those with dyslexia. Others are so decorative to be almost illegible. Some are just for fun. Who enjoyed dingbats in the 90s?

So, how to choose one? It depends on the use case! But in general, readability and personality should be considered.

If what you're writing isn't pure decoration, then it should be readable. Make sure people are picking up what you're writing down.

Personality. This comes back to your brand strategy. Is your brand traditional or ultramodern? Feminine or masculine? Flowing and creative or dependable? Vibe check your font palette before locking it in.

Don't have more than one standout. Make sure your fonts compliment each other (not too similar) and then choose a nice plain sans-serif for body text and general use.

Viola! Font palette. Now stick to it!

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I work with businesses that are doing big things, but still look small. I help them show up, stand out and charge what they're worth through branding. DM me if that's interesting to you.

29/06/2026

I went out to Wynnum to visit Belinda Frendon at the new Omni Flooring store! We finished this brand a couple of months ago and her store is really coming together. More samples and signage yet to come!

(The furry Omni mascot Ollie was not present, unfortunately!)

Honestly, the things this woman knows about carpet... you don't know what you don't know. If you're renovating and need new flooring, Belinda has you(r floors) covered. And your windows too!

25/06/2026

Sometimes, connection grows slowly over time. Other times, it feels immediate.

I was recently referred to someone and during our first phone conversation, we discovered that she had spent ten years living in the tiny town next to the tiny town I grew up, in the middle of nowhere in New South Wales.

What are the chances?

That one shared detail opened the door. We found other things in common, the conversation flowed easily and the professional connection quickly became a very human one.

That conversation eventually turned into a branding project for her new business.

But we didn’t stop at creating the brand.

Starting a business can feel like standing in an empty room with a hundred decisions flying at you and no one to help. So, I shared what I had learned in business and introduced her to potential referral partners and other service providers.

I drove across the city to visit her new store. Not because it was written into the scope. Because I cared about what she was building (and I wanted to see the new signage!)

We started talking about her new rescue dog, about the people living in the area around her store. Many of them come past with their dogs. Many are renovating. They are exactly the kind of people she wants to notice her business.

Somewhere in that conversation, an idea appeared:

An A-frame sign for the front of the shop featuring her pup, ready to delight the other dog-lovers in the area.

It was warm, memorable and completely connected to the local community she wanted to reach.

That idea didn’t come from staring harder at a marketing plan.

It came from listening.

From knowing the person, the place and the people around the business well enough to spot a connection between them.

Connection is one of our core beliefs at Rove Creative.

To me, it means taking the time to understand the person behind the business. It means looking beyond the immediate deliverables and asking, “What else could help?”

Sometimes that leads to an introduction.

Sometimes it's sharing insights.

And sometimes it leads to a rescue frenchie becoming the face greeting potential customers outside a flooring store.

A branding project may begin with strategy, logos, colour and typography.

But the best ideas often grow from something less tangible:

Trust.

Curiosity.

Shared understanding.

A genuine investment in seeing another person succeed.

The brand is what we create together.

The connection is what allows us to find the ideas that truly fit.

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Connection is one of Rove Creative’s core brand beliefs, shaping how we work, collaborate and build brands that resonate with the people they are made for.

This series explores the beliefs behind our brand personality and how those deeper ideas influence the words, visuals and experiences people associate with a business.

23/06/2026

Does choosing a colour palette make you excited or stressed?

Let's unpack it a bit, there's a lot to think about here. Then add the technical limitations I talk about at the end of this video!

A few bold colours paired with some darks and neutrals makes for a nicely balanced palette.

Your main colours, usually the ones in your logo, are referred to as your primary palette. Remember your brand should have a "dark mode" as well as a light mode. Background colours that compliment your main brand colour are important. These are referred to as secondary colours. They're usually more neutral and support your primaries.

Some brands even have tertiary palettes, but now we're getting too deep...

I keep it simple for this video, but here's an overview of the different types of colour combinations if you wanna get nerdy with me!

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 colours are opposite each other on the colour wheel (e.g., blue and orange), creating high contrast.

𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗼𝘂𝘀 refers to three or more colours located side-by-side on the colour wheel (e.g., blue, blue-green, and green), producing a serene, harmonious feel.

𝗠𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗰𝗵𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗲 palettes are variations in shades, tones, and tints of a single base color, offering a conservative, clean, and elegant appearance.

𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗰 are three colours equally spaced around the colour wheel, forming a triangle (e.g., red, yellow, and blue), offering high contrast while retaining balance.

𝗦𝗽𝗹𝗶𝘁-𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 is one of my favourites. A base color combined with the two colors adjacent to its complement, providing high contrast without being as jarring as a pure complementary pair.

𝗧𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗶𝗰 (Double Complementary) refers to two pairs of complementary colours, creating a rich and complex, sometimes intense, yet balanced, palette.

Colour is so important for brand, make sure you've given it some thought and built a palette that actually works everywhere you need it to.

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I work with businesses that are doing big things, but still look small. I help them show up, stand out and charge what they're worth through branding. DM me if that's interesting to you.

18/06/2026

I had my FIRST brand video shoot today!

3 years ago you couldn't have PAID me to do this. I'd be sick with anxiety. Today it was fun! I hope it turns out well, but I mostly hope it feels like me. Because in the age of AI the reason people work with you is because of YOU.

Big up to Amos and the team at Media. Your guidance and preparation made this possible! I loved arriving to see my brand spark on the wall and I can't wait to see what you do with the footage!

16/06/2026

Are you a DIY brand builder? I love that. No one knows your business better than you do.

From someone who does this day-in day-out, I have three quick tips.

𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆: do your research. Understand your clients, your competitors and why you do what you do. Make sure you know how to express WHAT you do to others. Know how your brand should 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭.

Now you're ready to start designing.

𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝘁𝘆: less is always more. A logo should be legible at very small scales, no fluffy details. When you think you're finished, see what you can remove from what you're designing.

Have you added things that "look nice" but have no connection to your brand? Lose them.

𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆: Do the same thing. Over and over and over. Same fonts, same colours, same logo, same style. Only you think it's boring, your ideal clients are still realising you exist!

Don't wear a different "uniform" the next time they see you.

When I brand my clients, first we do a strategy workshop so I understand deeply who they are and why the business exists. What problem/s they solve and for who.

When strategy is clear, I start to design. I say as much as I can with as little as posible. Look at any successful professional services brand. Enough personality to be recognisable and enough simplicity to be professional.

Then I make you a brand bible. Your brand guidelines. This helps you, and everyone who works with your brand, to stay consistent. This means your prospects can recognise you, start to trust you and book you.

Strategy, simplicity, consistency.

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I work with businesses that are doing big things, but still look small. I help them show up, stand out and charge what they're worth through branding. DM me if that's interesting to you.

Address

South Brisbane, QLD
4101

Telephone

+61460830243

Website

https://www.rovecreative.com.au/

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