Charles Stanley

Bringing digital to the core

Charles Stanley, a wealth management company founded in 1792, has a legacy of managing and growing its clients’ assets.

As Design Director, I played a key role in driving their digital transformation. The mission: to consolidate and redefine their digital ecosystem, enhancing both the brand experience and customer service offering. My goal was to deliver a best-in-class digital experience that balanced their prestigious heritage with the needs of today’s digitally savvy clients.

The challenge

Charles Stanley operates a complex business model with a diverse range of customer types, each with unique needs. However, numerous paper-based processes, legacy systems, and an outdated digital estate led to inefficiencies across its 20 physical branches. The challenge was to streamline their digital touchpoints into a unified, user-friendly platform that improved functionality, usability, and scalability.

Crafting the experience

I led a talented design team in creating streamlined customer journeys for both prospective clients (via the public website) and existing clients (via the logged-in interface). Key features like portfolio analysis, trading, and account management were seamlessly integrated, all supported by the development of a modern design system.

User journeys

We tested the hypothesis of a single website that adapts to whether a client is logged in, displaying relevant information accordingly. By consolidating the estate, we streamlined navigation and optimised the overall customer journey.

Crafting a new digital identity

As Design Director, I took full responsibility for setting the design direction and personally crafted Charles Stanley’s new digital identity. This wasn’t a rebrand, but a thoughtful translation of their prestigious heritage into a modern, digital context. Key elements included:

  • Typography: Bold and distinctive, with italics used to focus on the client, such as in the phrase: “Let us create your secure financial future.”

  • Colour palette: Vibrant yet balanced, bringing energy to a traditional sector.

  • The Kaleidoscope: I reimagined this cherished graphical device as a suite of flexible, personality-driven elements. I even named two “Charles” and “Stanley,” making content creation within the CMS more engaging and fun for the client.

Website

A strong identity adapts according to the job at hand. The website features vibrant, story-driven layouts that convey confidence, prestige, and warmth, standing out in a competitive market.

Account area

The richness of the logged-in experience is simplified for task-focused users, the logged-in interface prioritises functionality while maintaining visual consistency with the public site. Features like portfolio X-ray, trading, and account management are designed with clarity and ease of use in mind.

A modern design system

After validating the new design direction through testing, I led the creation of a comprehensive design system that would support all of Charles Stanley’s digital products moving forward. This new system not only aligned with the brand’s identity but also laid the foundation for future digital growth, providing scalability for new features and services.

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