Evolve Academy

Established in 2016, Evolve Hair Academy has been going from strength to strength in Manchester, providing first class apprenticeship training and support to students in the hairdressing and barbering industry. Having outgrown their initial premises, the business owners Martin Harkness and Nicola Steinbach decided that a site on New George Street in the Northern Quarter area of Manchester would be a perfect place to relocate their rapidly expanding company to.

Previously, the property had been a furniture display showroom and although the space was perfect for Evolve, a lot of internal structural work was going to be required to realise the dream. While the work was being undertaken, Martin and Nicola approached us at The binary Projects to come up with an overall graphic and signage solution tying in with their existing brand style and we were more than happy to help!

During the design development process we were asked to provide ideas for a feature wall area within the student training room, and here we had a perfect solution in mind… What we recommended here was a feature wall completely covered in a realistic synthetic foliage – a biophilic wall – which is a stunning feature in it’s own right, but we also proposed to include a neon-style LED illuminated unit onto the foliage. Neon signs have always been popular but can be incredibly expensive to produce but with the advent of modern LED lighting technology, neon effect signs can be designed, fabricated and installed in a fraction of the time and at a much more affordable cost than traditional "glass & gas" tubes.

Installation of the four whiteboard feature walls and accompanying wall graphics and wallpapers. We started the installation after the vast majority of the building work had been finished which was great for us, as we were working with what was effectively a ‘blank canvas’ with new partition walls in place and freshly prepared and painted wall surfaces. Alongside the functional whiteboard wall coverings, we installed some striking motivational wall graphics and a timeline graphic showing the ‘Evolution of Evolve Academy’. Feature wallpapers were also included in both the WC’s and the reception area.

Installation of window graphics, exterior sign and internal 3-dimensional lettering. The translucent graphics we installed on the exterior windows were kept quite subtle, incorporating graphic elements taken from Evolve’s brand style. Opening times and pricing information were also added to the main entrance door as well. The illuminated projecting sign we proposed was of a minimalist monotone style showing just the Evolve logo, wired in and fitted above the front door. We also produced the Evolve logo out of 18mm deep 3-dimensional lettering and installed this onto the feature wall in the reception area.

Installation of the biophilic wall and LED neon sign Firstly, we fabricated the LED unit in-house with the words ‘Where Talent Thrives’ constructed from a bright pink neon LED flex and fitted into a bespoke acrylic panel. Next we installed the biophilic foliage to the wall surface ensuring complete coverage, and although this looked brilliant on its own, after the addition of the neon unit on top, the overall look of this particular feature wall was superb, giving a striking yet coordinated contrast between the relaxing, natural aesthetic of the foliage complimented by the brightness and vibrancy of the neon.

The whole team really enjoyed this particular installation for Evolve. From the outset both Martin and Nicola have been clear about the brand style they wanted us to convey within the academy, but have also been incredibly supportive and responsive to any of the design and installation ideas we presented them with along the way. They also had some very kind words to say about us here at The binary Projects.