In this first in a series we’ll continue throughout 2019, MID asked Denver design firm NORDEN41 to tell us about what drives their creative output. “Think outside the box,” we told them — and they delivered.

Ninety-nine percent of graphic design firm NORDEN41’s clientele are referral. That tells you something about how they’re regarded by their customer base. “Happy clients — that’s the goal,” says Matt Bargell, N41’s founder and chief creative officer, who started the firm in 2007. Creative director and designer Steve Gray came on board in 2013 and since then, N41 has continued growing its client list by providing refined design, intuitive websites and progressive media campaigns. N41 isn’t like other design firms, however. They have no sales pipeline, preferring to work directly with clients. “We’re really focused on working within our customers’ budgets and timelines,” Bargell says. “We consider ourselves a team player with the marketing departments of some of our bigger clients.” Translation: You won’t find any prima-donna behavior at N41, either. “We’re not trying to shove our design agenda down anyone’s throat … make them conform to what we think is cool. We try to understand what they like and then execute something that looks insanely great or works really well for the goal they’re after.” At the end of the day, Bargell adds, his team is “doing what we love — we hope people like what we’re doing, and we try to treat people fairly and be as creative as we can.”

We try to understand what they like and then execute something that looks insanely great or works really well for the goal they’re after.

Modern In Denver asked N41’s creative leadership team to provide examples of what inspires and influences them, creatively speaking, encouraging them to be imaginative in compiling their list. Here’s what they told us (and then scroll down to see a sampling of NORDEN41’s work):

NORDEN41’s Recent Projects

Steve Gray

Creative Director + Designer