Rufus Shmufus... thinking, creating, connecting

We've Moved!

2009-04-17T14:12:00.001+01:00

We've moved to http://blog.rufus.co.uk/, so come and visit us over there.

Papa Bouba Di Knee Op...

2009-03-23T10:44:00.003Z

Big news! Ian, our MD, has had a knee operation!

He came back to work the very next day, proudly grasping the photo's and bandaged up like a scene out of the Mummy.

The photo's have had us all squirming, grimacing and writhing around like we were playing a major game of twister.

The end results have been a success and he is now jumping around like a young gazelle after eating a full bag of skittles.

The only problem is, he may have had the wrong knee done, as he persists in dressing up as Rolf Harris's alter ego, 'Jake the Peg', with his extra carry on!

Let's hope not!

Cliff Hanger

2009-03-19T13:47:00.004Z

The other week we reported that our Graeme (the mad one) Madden, was turning into John the Baptist.

This is no longer the case, as it's actually the mountaineer, Chris Bonington! (Same beard though).

Quietly going on with our business, Vince shouted up with 'Did anyone see the celebrities climb Mount Kilimanjaro the other night for Comic Relief?' to which our Graeme said proudly, 'I've done that!'

Our response was the typical... 'Shhhhuuuuurrrruuuuupppp man and get out of town!'. But seriously he has!

Scrambling, we all visited http://www.flickr.com/photos/gmadden/2564480219/in/set-72157605518904902/ for proof and WOW, to our astonishment, there he is, proud as punch, at the summit!

We can now truly re-word the lyrics: 'As sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti' (once warbled by the 80's band Toto in the song Africa) to our very own version: 'As sure as our Graeme rises like Olympus above the Serengeti.'

Impressed, you should be. Top notch Graeme, well done!

In the presence of...

2009-03-09T15:37:00.005Z

Over the last few days a transformation has been happening before our very eyes like a glorious manifestation.

Graeme (the mad one) Madden, is turning into John the Baptist! It's official.

Due to the rapid growth of facial and head hair the transformation is virtually complete. We believe we truly are in the presence of something fab.

Not only is he a wizard on the web front but we are half expecting a set of 10 new Rufus commandments to be set in stone.

We will confirm this over the next few days if he starts wearing a robe, sandals, brandishing a staff around and starts to dunk us under the water cooler.

Hallelujah!

The Rufus Cake Wars - Part 2

2009-02-25T13:32:00.004Z

Allan has produced a classic, back-hand, down the line, pass shot which would win any Wimbledon final or even one of Pete's County Championships!

He has only supplied each of us with a 80's favourite (like my favourite, satin, adidas shorts), the majestic, the vintage, the up-standing... wait for it... a Curly Wurly!

The teeth pulling hard men of the chocolate/toffee world who persist in playing tug of war with your gums and rendering you speechless when your molars are welded together.

The Gaz-la has been forced onto the back foot and has retreated to ponder his next move.

So, the baton has been passed to the rest of us, like a big chocolate log in the hands of a crack 400m relay team.

It is going to be a huge mountain to climb to match the achievement set by big Al, but like a famous saying; 'If Mohamed can't go to the mountain, let the mountain come to us!' Or something along those lines. So again, we are begging you to supply us with chocolate. Remember chocolates are not just for Christmas, they are for a well oiled design studio!

The Rufus Cake Wars

2009-01-16T11:41:00.001Z

Over the last few days there has been cake wars at Rufus and I don't mean throwing them at each other in a Bugsy Malone moment.

Gary in our technical department has upped the stakes (cakes) and raised the bar by bringing in some fancies that has shook the building to it's foundations and blown everyone's feeble biscuit efforts out of the water.

Due to the massive competition between Gary and Allan (our driver liase and who claims to be able to bench press at least the equivalent weight of 10 boxes of Wagon Wheels), Allan is now on the hunt for a creamy, chocolate delight, to out-do the Gaz-la. Gary is thinking of backing his claims of a tasty treat by bringing in some muscle.

So if you see our Al, feverishly burrowing through the cake stand at Asda, help him out by slipping a 10 spot in his rocket to buy us lovelies as it will benefit us, and you, hugely! Thank you. Yum yum.

Pieds Oranges and Nunnery Hort Couture

2008-12-04T10:39:00.006Z

Gareth’s been Christmas shopping (for himself of course)… These rare Nikes were bought in the Nike Mercer store in New York and can't be bought from any other store or website. Obviously he chose orange ones, as it was a stipulation in his contract when he joined us.

Not so sure if they’ll look so cool when worn simultaneously with his new orange padded jacket though?? However, this Finisterre ‘Surfer’s Path’ jacket was the winner of The Observer’s Ethical Fashion Award 2008, so at least he can wear it safe in the knowledge that he’s done his bit for the nuns in Columbia!

Pool and Pictures with Paul Sculthorpe

2008-12-04T10:30:00.004Z

Rugby league champion and leg-end, Paul Sculthorpe, dropped by this month for a game of pool and a photo shoot.

We’ve been creating a ‘terminator-style’ image for Paul himself, however a second signed canvas will be auctioned off for charity and a third will be added into our expanding ‘hall of fame’ of signed canvasses in our office gallery.
Go Scully, Go Scully!

Hopefully Yule Be There!

2008-12-03T09:35:00.004Z

We're getting a little bit excited, as Friday is our Christmas Party.... open to invitees only (so if your name's not down you're not coming in).

We just thought we'd say 'thank you' to our clients, suppliers and staff by throwing a bash.

We've got live music, prize give aways, orange candy canes and plenty of fine food and drinkies, so hopefully we'll see you on Friday for some festive cheer!

Countdown to Christmas

2008-12-01T11:18:00.005Z

It's official... we can now start the Christmas countdown. We hope you all enjoyed opening ‘door number one’ on your advent calendar this morning. We'd love to hear what you all found... was it a wise man, a donkey or Cheryl Cole??

December breakfasts are delightful though! The energy boosting nutrients that are found in chocolate are just what our wee brains need to start the cold winter days, along with good glug of coffee.

24 days and counting until the big guy arrives!

The Future!

2008-10-31T11:47:00.003Z

We’ve having a Rufus Halloween R&R (research and relaxation) session this afternoon with Stuart from The Wood Holmes Group. We’ve invited him to give us a talk on ‘futures’ after we heard how impressed over 400 o2 staff were when he gave the talk at Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium earlier this year.

Monster-Munch-a-licious!

2008-10-28T09:35:00.001Z

They’re back, they’re big and they’re Munch-a-licious!

Monster Munch have been re-launched (couldn't believe it when I spotted the packet on Graeme's desk yesterday!), taking a step back in time to bring back the bigger ‘baked corn snack’ after they mysteriously shrank in size in recent years (or did we just get bigger??).

Walkers have brought back the original packaging and cheeky monster characters too, which adds to the nostalgia surrounding these legendary monster snacks!

Ooooh we love ‘em!
Well done Walkers.

Stuck into Halloween Fancies

2008-10-21T17:02:00.001+01:00

Vinchenzo just couldn't resist the look of these Halloweeny French Fancies when he was in the local supermarche the other day.

Mmmm.... we had a mad half hour afterwards which we put down to the orange food colouring! We can't get enough of the orange stuff!

Rufus client wins ASPIRE-ational award

2008-09-29T15:56:00.002+01:00

Rufus is delighted to announce the success of one of its long-term clients, Adventurelands, following their scoop of the ‘Brand of the Year’ award at the Play Providers Association’s (PPA) first annual ASPIRE (AwardS for the Play Industry Recognising Excellence) Awards held in Birmingham this week.

Adventurelands, a fun-filled adventure playground for children, entered the awards only as a starting point to raise their profile and to build their brand outside of the North East.

Ian Wright, Rufus MD and record ‘cup-of-coffee’ drinker commented, “It’s excellent to see another one of our clients doing so well and our own work being celebrated on a national level. Good design is fundamental to creating a great brand that people recognise and value.”

P-A-R-T-Y time

2008-09-29T15:36:00.001+01:00

What a night!

We’d like to say a big thank you to all those who came to our party on Friday night. We held a bash to celebrate reaching our 21st year in design – a pretty big achievement in our eyes. We think it’s safe to say everyone had a great night. The last people left at 5am!

Take a look at all the pictures but leave comments at your peril! http://www.flickr.com/photos/30834099@N03/

Feedback received from friends, family and clients has been great.
Here are just some:

“Thank you for inviting my family and me to your wonderful 21st birthday party - we had a great time. The food was fantastic and all of the hard work you and all the staff had put in - could not be missed.“ Stephanie Buchanan, Charity Manager, Cash for Kids
“The orange Rufus goodie box was fantastic. I’ve been hooting to myself reading all the labels! Excellent buffoonery!” Phil Bailey, Arnott Commercial
“Excellent celebration – children were so thrilled to be invited to one of Mum and Dad’s work night outs! … So I guess you are suddenly the most popular company to deal with – and they give them gifts too……..!” Philip and Valerie Gibbs, Arrow Commercial

If you were there too post your comments!

We are Rufus

2008-09-29T14:29:00.001+01:00

Hello guys and dolls, we're Rufus.

We’re what we like to call a ‘design hub’ where anything visual can be created. This year we’re celebrating entering our 21st year in design – that’s 21 years of blood, sweat and tears…

So welcome to our blog. We'll be posting little snippits of news and fun stuff that will hopefully keep you entertained. You might even find it interesting enough to share with a friend.

Rufusshmufus-and-out!