Grid & Co. — Basel, since 1968
We design the grid. Not the decoration.
Identity systems, editorial print, wayfinding, and custom type — every project published from the same modular grid and baseline rhythm, in writing, before a single layout is drawn.
02 Method
One structure, four disciplines.
Identity Systems
A grid-based logotype and a rulebook, not a one-off mark: spacing, scale, and placement defined once, applied without redrawing, across every surface the identity touches.
Editorial & Print
Annual reports and books set on a single column grid, cover to colophon.
Wayfinding
Signage systems for transit and public buildings, legible at a glance.
Custom Type
Bespoke grotesque families cut for one client's need — a signage cap-height, a dense timetable figure, a footnote that still holds its counters at 7pt.
Flagship system — Basel Verkehrsbetriebe
One typeface. Every platform, every language.
We redrew Basel's tram and bus network signage on a single grid: departure boards, platform markers, and route maps now share one type family, one scale, and one colour key across all three cantons the network serves.
03 Selected work
Four systems, four institutions.
BVT Timetables — Departure Board System
A tabular figure set and colour key for split-flap and LED boards across 40 stations, readable at platform distance in four languages.
Kunstmuseum Basel — Exhibition Print Program
Letterpress catalogue covers, 6-show run
Schwabe Verlag — Backlist Type Specimen
Custom grotesk family, 5 weights
Universität Basel — Campus Signage Grid
Building and room numbering, 14 buildings
04 Industry expertise
Four sectors we return to.
A grid built for a museum's rotating exhibitions behaves differently from one built for a transit network's fixed stock. We keep separate playbooks for each.
05 Process
Eight weeks, five phases.
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Week 0Brief
Content, context, and audience constraints, written down before any layout starts. Client provides existing assets and access to stakeholders.
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Weeks 1–2GridColumn count, margins, and baseline established. This structure is fixed before type or colour decisions begin.
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Weeks 3–4TypeHierarchy set in one grotesk family on a modular scale. Client reviews one working proof, not three alternative directions.
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Week 5ProofA physical or full-scale digital proof under real conditions — a printed signature, a mounted sign panel, a rendered timetable board.
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Weeks 6–8ShipGrid specs, type files, and a rulebook handed to your team — built so it can be extended without calling us back.
Client responsibilities: one decision-maker available for weekly review calls, and sign-off within three business days of each phase's proof. Slower sign-off extends the timeline week for week.
Systems in active use
06 Engagements
Two ways to start.
Identity Sprint
A logotype, core grid, and one flagship application — the fastest way to a working system.
- 4 weeks, 2 revision rounds
- Logotype, grid spec, and type files
- One flagship application (site, print, or signage)
Excludes signage fabrication and full editorial template sets.
Full Grid System
Identity, editorial templates, wayfinding grid, and a bespoke type adjustment, delivered as one system.
- 10 weeks, dedicated typographer
- On-site signage or print audit included
- Full system manual for your in-house team
- Two complimentary revisions, 12 months
Both engagements are illustrative starting scopes; final quotes depend on the number of applications and languages a system must cover.
"They handed us a grid, not a mood board. Eighteen months later our exhibition posters still look like one family, even though four different designers have worked on them since."
"The departure board system is the first thing in a decade our maintenance crew hasn't had to improvise around."
"Forty backlist titles now read as one series on a shelf, without erasing what made each cover different."
Illustrative client quotes — sample content, not independently sourced.
07 Before you write in
Questions worth asking first.
Let's build your grid.
Tell us what needs structure. We take on a limited number of new systems each quarter.
Start a project08 Get in touch
Send us a brief.
We confirm receipt and a first working session within two business days. No newsletter, no data sharing — we only use this to schedule a call.