With

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing lead at Willow, which is a real estate fintech startup. We’re creating Canada’s first real estate exchange.

It’s a two-sided marketplace that allows people to invest in real estate the same way they do in the stock market, which includes searching for properties. After finding a property, the information will flip over to an exchange, where people can purchase shares of the unit as they would do on a trading application.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DVXD?

The challenge we were facing was building the brand. A lot of our users were comfortable with real estate but not with trading. We needed to take care of the education aspect and make things very clear, upfront, and transparent.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

DVXD has created our brand's visual identity and solidified the tone of voice used with customers and the world in general. The company name was already chosen, but they were given carte blanche to design a new logo, and set up the typography and brand colors.

The team has also defined the look of the website, including how users interact with it, and the experience of switching from the search side to the exchange. They’re also working on UI/UX design, user testing, and much more.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with the whole team. We work with Derek (Designer & Principal), a project manager, a developer, and a lead designer who is in charge of the brand. Nelson (Design Director) is working on the website’s UI/UX and Setareh (Designer) is creating a design system.

How did you come to work with DVXD?

We needed a design partner, so I did thorough research and contacted people from both the US and locally. I met Derek by chance a few years ago when he was at another company — I come from the advertising world and know everyone in Canada. He told me that he’d started his own agency and we gave them the opportunity to pitch. It was very lucky for both of us.

Initially, we were going to work with a brand agency for branding and a design agency for UI/UX, but DVXD blew everybody out of the water. In the end, they won both projects.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost has been around $100,000–$300,000 CAD (approximately $120,000–$360,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with DVXD in August 2020, and we finished the branding work in April 2021. However, we continue working in tandem on the UI/UX design and finishing touches on the platform.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We have internal markers for quality that we give to DVXD and they've definitely achieved it all for our branding and visual identity. We aren’t going to launch until the fall of 2021, but we flipped our brand two weeks ago, and we’re getting a fantastic response — everybody loves it.

Strategy is our background and they’re strategic designers, so it has functioned well. We work together to create a tier-one brand that stands well alongside those we admire. DVXD has done a great job.

How did DVXD perform from a project management standpoint?

We’ve had 2–3 meetings a week during the main work, and we message over Slack quite a bit. We’re using Jira and Notion for project management, and Figma for design.

DVXD’s project manager is fantastic; I’d poach her if I could. We’re iterative, so we talk about what we’re going through. There have been a few missed deadlines, even though we’ve always been aware of them.

Their project manager has done a fantastic job of keeping everyone together even on our side. We’ve been working in tandem and they’ve readjusted if we don’t like a direction. They’ve never gone away for weeks or months.

What did you find most impressive about them?

DVXD’s culture is their most impressive aspect. It has influenced our culture because it’s very similar to theirs, except for the development side. 

They’ve all been independently successful as designers, and they started a business looking to use design for social good. They’re an agency, but they work with companies that want to help people in the pursuit of making money without being destructive. DVXD isn’t only out there for the money and that’s a real feather in their hat.

We didn't realize we were searching for those values until after they gave us their pitch. Since having that approach, we’ve been aware of the design’s appearance, and we’ve been focusing on accessibility as we build the product. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s a minor quibble, but sometimes things don't come out very polished. We've been working iteratively, which is great, but DVXD could improve on how they present specific things.

Any advice for potential customers?

I’d tell them to go for it, as long as DVXD doesn’t take the focus away from us. Their team only works with partners that they care about, and, being in the industry, I can tell when someone cares.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Head of Corporate Development of BorderPass

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Immigration services for colleges, universities, and employers to manage their students' or employees' needs. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire With to accomplish?

• Establish our brand identity
• Design a new website
• Work with us to see if come to life (implementation)

SOLUTION

How did you find With?

Referral

Why did you select With over others?

Good value for cost

How many teammates from With were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

The engagement covered a comprehensive range of design and implementation services, including:

 1. Brand Identity Development

 • Facilitated in-depth brand discovery sessions to define our mission, vision, tone, and personality

 • Created a complete brand identity system, including typography, color palette, and visual language

 • Designed the BorderPass logo and wordmark, with scalable usage across digital and print formats

 2. UX Strategy & Design

 • Conducted user research to understand the needs of international students and workers navigating immigration

 • Designed user flows and wireframes to support a frictionless onboarding and application experience

 • Developed high-fidelity mockups for key platform interfaces, including document management, legal service access, and onboarding journeys

 3. Website & Front-End Design

 • Delivered a full website design focused on conversion, trust-building, and clarity of value proposition

 • Created responsive design assets for mobile, tablet, and desktop experiences

 • Provided a full design system and component library for future scalability

 4. Implementation Support

 • Worked closely with our development team to support implementation and maintain fidelity to the design vision

 • Delivered design handoff files, specs, and ongoing QA to ensure brand consistency throughout the platform

 Their team was thoughtful, strategic, and collaborative throughout — they played a major role in helping us bring the BorderPass brand and experience to life.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The collaboration with With delivered tangible outcomes that advanced both the growth and operational capacity of BorderPass:

1. Increased Client Acquisition & Conversion:

 • After launching our new brand and platform experience, we observed a clear increase in user registrations and onboarding completion.

 • The streamlined and intuitive user flows led to higher engagement, with more users completing immigration assessments and taking next steps on the platform.

2. Enhanced Brand Recognition & Trust:

 • The professional design and cohesive visual identity significantly improved first impressions with clients, partners, and stakeholders.

 • We received consistent positive feedback from users and institutions who noted the clarity, credibility, and ease-of-use of the updated platform.

3. Operational Efficiency & Scalability:

 • The modular design system and design handoff process enabled our development team to implement new features more efficiently.

 • The improved UX allowed us to seamlessly onboard new institutional partners and scale to thousands of international users.

4. Platform Growth & Market Validation:

 • Since the project’s completion, we’ve successfully partnered with major organizations including RBC, Telus, and several Designated Learning Institutions.

 • The brand and design foundation helped position BorderPass as a trusted platform for international mobility and legal compliance.

Overall, the work with With played a critical role in positioning BorderPass for long-term growth and user success.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Yes, they delivered items on time and with great project management throughout. 

What was your primary form of communication with With?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The creativity and attention to detail while also really trying hard to understand the customer and their point of view. 

Are there any areas for improvement or something With could have done differently?

No, not that I can think of.