Global design at scale:
citizenM Hotels.
Leading design and art direction for a global hotel chain — email campaigns, iPad interface, iPhone app UX, and print design across every property worldwide.
- WHO — citizenM Hotels
- WHAT — Print Design, Web Design, UI Design, Application UX & UI
- WHEN — August 2014 – August 2016
- WHERE — Voorschoten, The Netherlands
- HOW — In-house design & art direction
Print Design for
All Hotels Globally.
In charge of print design for all citizenM hotels worldwide — managing production across every property, ensuring brand consistency from Amsterdam to New York.
- Print production for all hotels worldwide
- Brand consistency across every property
- Managed external print suppliers
The citizenM
Hello / Goodbye.
Designed a newspaper-format welcome concept for hotel guests — “citizenM says: hello” on the front, “goodbye” in dozens of languages on the back. Produced for all properties worldwide.
- Newspaper-format print concept
- Multilingual goodbye page (40+ languages)
- Distributed across all hotels globally
- On-brand citizenM illustration and typography
Keycard Design
Every Property.
Designed the hotel keycards used across all citizenM properties — featuring the brand’s signature “citizenM says” messaging, custom illustrations, and city listings. Every guest touches this design.
- Keycard design for all global properties
- citizenM says messaging and illustration
- Amsterdam, London, Paris, Rotterdam, Glasgow, New York
- Print production management
Every Touchpoint
Designed.
Even the do not disturb door hanger got the citizenM treatment — featuring the brand’s signature illustration and cheeky messaging. Used across all hotel rooms globally.
- Custom door hanger design
- citizenM says messaging and illustration
- Produced for all global properties
- Part of the complete in-room print suite
Email Campaigns
That Convert.
Designed and built responsive HTML email campaigns for citizenM — from initial moodboarding and hand-drawn sketches through to production-ready builds tested across all devices and email clients.
- Responsive HTML email design and build
- Moodboard and concept development
- Hand-drawn UX sketches before digital
- Multi-device testing and QA
App UX &
60+ Custom Icons.
Designed the UX for citizenM’s iPhone app and iPad interface — including a full custom SVG icon set of 60+ icons covering room controls, booking, food & drinks, transport, alarms, and more.
- iPhone app UX design
- iPad room control interface
- 60+ custom SVG icons designed from scratch
- Booking, room, F&B, and concierge flows
Leading Multiple
Creative Teams.
Led art direction with multiple external creative and development teams — collaborating across developers, project managers, and social media managers to deliver consistent, high-quality output.
- Art direction across external agencies
- Cross-team collaboration (developers, PMs, social)
- Design leadership and quality assurance
I had the absolute pleasure to work with Dave during his time as Graphic Designer at citizenM. Dave has an unmatched level of creativity and energy, and when you place these two together you get a creative genius who does not stop until he takes the project from good to great. Nothing was too challenging for Dave and his problem solving skills has brought the best from each project he worked on. His commitment to the brand standards is contagious and Dave did a great job at aligning the brand standards with the operational guidelines. I am confident to say that Dave will be difficult to replace and he will be a true asset in any team/company he will be part of.
citizenM Hotels
Design that scales across continents
What could we do for you?
Screenshots
& Photography
All projects, designs, and creative work shown were produced by Dave Head while employed as Graphic, Web and UI Designer at citizenM Hotels in The Netherlands (Aug 2014 – Aug 2016). All work, assets, and intellectual property remain the ownership of citizenM Hotels. This case study is presented with publicly available data to demonstrate capability.
What clients say about our work
Real reviews from real businesses.
Had a website made from scratch was done within 4 days and turn around was great.
Great service overall. It's been a real pleasure working with Dave and his team. They've helped strengthen our business presence and brand identity through our website and are always on hand to offer support and go the extra mile. We're looking forward to continuing to work with Dave and the Northern Digital team on future projects as our business grows.
Very good experience, very knowledgable and trustworthy. Highly recommend.
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