Design

• Basic graphic design companies are the most numerous in the region. These are retailers primarily and offer products such as copying, printing, creating business cards and other commercial activities. These companies tend to be small and there are approximately thirty to forty of these operations in the Waikato.
• Design consultants also operate in the region; these are usually a collection of designers or sole agents. However most of the designers in the region do not just offer visual design services. Verdict for example provides consultancy on a number of issues and has experts in a number of areas, particularly public relations. This complete focus means that organisations like this really offer two products commercial media and creative products which are then used in a commercial sense - they operate like a full-service advertising agency. Disc3 are an example of a more traditional design firm in that there is more concentration on the creative aspects of design and not providing general media consulting. Most of the firms in the region focus on the print medium but the digital medium is also very important.
• There are a number of people working as industrial designers in the region, often with engineering companies, but there are also occasional standalone businesses such as MW Design at Innovation Park.