I had the pleasure of sitting down with Simon Dixon, the co-founder of DixonBaxi, a global branding agency that’s worked with clients like AC Milan, Warner Bros, Google and Samsung. With three decades in the industry, our conversation was packed with insights into branding and creativity, all delivered in Simon’s down-to-earth style.
One of the first things we explored was what branding actually is. Simon made a point that I wish every business owner would hear: “People get a little caught up or confused between identity and the design aspect of branding and branding conceptually.” For Simon, branding is simply people’s relationship with a company, and the business’s relationship with them. A logo is part of that, but it’s not the whole story.
This is the conversation I have with almost every small business owner I work with. So many people come to me thinking they need a new logo, when what they really need is to understand how their customers feel about them. You can’t design your way out of a relationship problem.
We also talked about why Simon and his co-founder started DixonBaxi in the first place. They wanted to go back to something simpler, “a bit more selfish,” and to build an agency around how they wanted to create. That philosophy still drives them today. DixonBaxi is run on principles and an ethos, captured in their Essentials book, rather than chasing the latest technology or doing what people say they should do.
I love the honesty of that word “selfish”. As business owners, we’re often told to build what the market wants, but a brand that its founders don’t believe in will always feel hollow. Knowing how you want to work is a strategy in itself.
What I find really refreshing is Simon’s take on growth. “We’d rather be better than bigger,” he told me. For DixonBaxi, it’s about being the size that lets them do the work they’re excited by, not hitting a certain headcount. I think this is one of the most freeing ideas in the whole episode. Bigger isn’t automatically better, and for a lot of small businesses, chasing growth at all costs is exactly what dilutes the brand. Decide what size lets you do your best work and build the brand around that.
Diversity is another thing DixonBaxi takes seriously, and Simon was honest that it takes real investment. Not everyone gets the chance to study at somewhere like Central Saint Martins, so sometimes you have to train people in the basics yourself, or even help with visas to bring talent in from other countries. Diversity isn’t something you put in a values statement; it’s something you actively build. This one hits home for me as a lecturer. I see so much talent in students who don’t come from the “right” schools or backgrounds, and it’s on the industry to open those doors rather than wait for people to find them.
Of course, we couldn’t skip how the business survived COVID. Simon shared his views on remote working: people will always want to come together in some way, but there’s now space for time alone and privacy, which he sees as a positive.
As our conversation came to a close, we talked about breaking into the industry. Simon feels there’s a tension between education and industry. Education teaches great creativity, but there can also be a perception that everyone should have everything, and have it easily. Wearing both hats, as a brand strategist and a university lecturer, I see this tension from both sides. Students leave with brilliant ideas, but the industry still rewards grit, curiosity and a willingness to learn on the job. Talent opens the door; attitude keeps you in the room.
So, if you’re interested in branding, creativity, or just want some solid advice from one of the industry’s leading experts, I highly recommend giving our chat a listen. Let’s keep building better brands together!
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