buro.

The Bureau that puts design into your everyday life

A Bold Beginning

In a digital landscape dominated by bland uniformity, there was a clear market gap: businesses needed design that could connect authentically with audiences while delivering real-world results. Not just pretty interfaces, but strategic design that drives business growth.

That’s when I founded Buro – a design studio perched in the Pyrenees mountains but with global ambitions. The mission was clear: deliver expert UX design with strategic business thinking, wrapped in visually distinctive expressions. No more “blanding,” no more forgettable solutions.

The Challenge

Creating a design studio from scratch posed several interconnected challenges:

  • Establishing a distinctive voice in an overcrowded market
  • Building a service offering that bridges user experience, business strategy, and visual design
  • Creating a sustainable business model that allows for selective, high-impact client relationships
  • Developing processes that scale without losing the personal touch
  • Positioning a remote mountain studio as a globally relevant design partner

The fundamental question was: How do you build a design practice that creates measurable business impact while remaining creatively fulfilling?

The Approach

Rather than following the typical agency playbook, I developed a methodology that combines three critical perspectives:

  1. Human Thinking – A proprietary approach that emphasizes transformation over completion, viewing each project as a continuous evolution rather than a linear process.

  2. Business-Conscious Design – Every design decision is evaluated not just for aesthetic appeal or usability, but for its potential business impact.

  3. Strategic Partnership Model – Moving beyond the client-vendor relationship to become genuine stakeholders in our clients’ success – sometimes literally, by taking equity positions in projects we believe in.

The studio’s foundation is built on a core philosophy: true innovation happens when design responds to real human needs while aligning with business objectives.

The Solution

Buro emerged as a multi-disciplinary design studio offering four interconnected service areas:

Product Design

Expert UX/UI design with a focus on creating intuitive, impactful digital experiences. From feature development to comprehensive product design, we translate user needs into functional interfaces.

Service Design

Comprehensive support for entrepreneurs and startups, guiding projects from initial concept (0) to market launch (1). This includes market research, persona development, user flows, testing, validation, roadmapping, and MVP definition.

Art Direction

Creating distinctive visual identities that go beyond logos to build complete brand ecosystems. This includes brand identity, graphic charters, social media kits, print materials, and showcase websites.

Consulting

Flexible expertise for teams needing specialized design input, including team augmentation, project support, training, mentoring, and strategic audits.

What sets Buro apart is our unique combination of rigorous UX methodology with creative expression and business acumen – all delivered with a distinctly human, occasionally irreverent approach.

Impact & Results

Though still in its early stages, Buro has already demonstrated its value through:

  • Development of a distinctive brand voice through the “Buro” newsletter, exploring design philosophy beyond surface aesthetics
  • Creation of a flexible service model that adapts to client needs while maintaining consistent design principles
  • Establishment of a unique positioning in the market: mountain-based but globally minded, technically proficient but creatively distinctive
  • Building a foundation for multiple revenue streams through both service offerings and strategic investments in client ventures

The Buro approach has resonated particularly with entrepreneurs and startups seeking design expertise that understands both user experience fundamentals and business realities.

What’s Next

Buro represents just the beginning of a larger vision. As the studio grows, it will:

  1. Expand its collaborative network of specialized talent
  2. Develop a portfolio of equity positions in promising ventures
  3. Launch its own products and services, using the same principles applied to client work

The ultimate goal is to build a design practice that doesn’t just serve businesses, but actively participates in their creation and growth – a true design venture studio.