Studio

Intro

We are Grabowski Böll.
A design studio in two cities, founded and led by Ali Böll and Carlo Grabowski. For sixteen years we have been designing packaging, wayfinding systems and brand identities — for companies, organisations and institutions that want their design to express a clear stance.

Our work rarely begins with design. More often it begins with a question. Or a misunderstanding. With a diffuse desire for change that does not yet have a name.
What we do first is create clarity. Clarity about what defines a brand. What it stands for — and what it does not. What language suits it. And what form it needs.

We do not design for markets, but for people. For people who carry responsibility — for products, spaces and organisations.
What they can expect from us is not the convenient solution. But a considered one.

Strategy

We believe good design grows out of a strong strategy. Not as a buzzword, but as a conceptual foundation. What is the core of an organisation? How can it be expressed clearly — and translated into visual language?

We develop strategies not in isolation, but in dialogue. Through workshops, conversations and precise questions we look closely at context and audiences. We analyse brand images and markets — and we also trust our instincts. Depending on the task, we draw on methods by Simon Sinek, Anne Miltenburg and others who help to clarify conceptual ambiguity.

Design

Once the direction is clear, the design work begins. Concept-driven, form-conscious and with a high standard of craft. Whether corporate design, label design or orientation in space — our aim is an image that endures and a system that works.

Curiosity

Curiosity is our engine. We immerse ourselves in new topics with genuine interest — especially when they are unfamiliar at first.

Whether steep-slope viticulture, modular sound systems or urban orientation in public space: we believe design thinking can connect to almost any field — if one is willing to look closely and listen carefully.
We prefer to understand before we design. Because conviction does not grow out of routine, but out of engagement.

Precision

For us, precision is above all a matter of craft. It reveals itself in details, in care and in clear decisions.

Not everything follows a grid — but everything follows a sense of form, function and timing. We do not design from a distance. We accompany our work consistently through to implementation. Because only then does an idea become an identity.

Carlo Grabowski im Wald

Humans

Carlo Grabowski lives in Leipzig, thinks quietly and brings design and language to the point. He is interested in wine and in the stories that make brands worth telling. His strength: turning the vague into something tangible — and giving identities a perceptible texture.

Ali Böll lives in Bremen’s Steintor district, teaches design at the University of the Arts Bremen and has been playing punk rock for 35 years. He has a soft spot for technology, trusts his instincts — and prefers eating at the Turkish grill around the corner.

We work together on what we consider worthwhile. And only when it feels right — intellectually and personally.

Network

We work with people we value — not with »service providers«. Writers, coders, photographers, illustrators, strategists. A network that forms flexibly whenever it is needed.

Strategy

Romas Stukenberg
Steffen Vogt

Code

Timm Albers
Ewald
Mario Helbing

Photography

Annika Nagel
Christian Rothe
Manolito Röhr
Caspar Sessler
Christina Stohn

Text

Marcel Linden

Illustration

Anna Schilling
Johannes Ellmer

Digital ist besser

We work with privacy-compliant tools and cloud storage solutions in Switzerland.
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