20 September 2018 -

When errors slip through the net

Client Partnership Director Adam Tuckwell discusses why it’s been an embarrassing week for Cathay Pacific Airways.

The award-winning, globally recognised Hong Kong-based airline, accidentally let one of its new jets fly the skies with the name Cathay Paciic painted on its side.

While many laughed at their misfortune and countless people took to Twitter to encourage Cathay to use a spell-check the next time it brands one of its new planes, we agency types use it as a reminder of the role artworking has within the design process.

People unfamiliar with the design process may question what role an artworker plays in a design agency?

An artworker takes the creative design concepts from the designer, tidies them up or reworks the design to create an entire document, fixing colours, typography and consistencies, and making the file print-ready. It’s not the most glamorous of jobs, but getting your final artwork right – not to mention the vital copy-checking and proofreading stages that have already happened – is crucial to any print project. Just ask the team at Cathay!

The airline officials quickly admitted to the mistake with good humour. “Oops… she’s going back to the shop!” a company social media writer joked on Twitter.

twitter.com/cathaypacific/

Some social media users found the error funny while others saw it as a sign of declining standards. For our clients and the Mobas team, it serves as a useful reminder of the importance of the sometime undervalued services of artworking and proofing which shouldn’t be overlooked no matter whether you’re printing a brochure or painting a plane!

As we approach World Cup year in 2026, the branding, ball and other assets have now been released so we are starting to get a feel for how it will look.

But, it’s not just the visuals of the branding and sponsors which shape how the tournament feels, but also the kits.


This time, as expected, the majority of kits will be Adidas or Nike manufactured, with a few others in the mix. But I want to spend some time focusing on Adidas.


They’ve made a subtle change to their template, which I expect to start seeing across all of their club kits too in the 26/27 season. It’s so subtle you may not notice, or you may notice a difference but not be able to put your finger on it.
In fact, it’s a change that I’m surprised hasn’t happened sooner.

If this sparked a rethink with your brand, imagine what we could achieve together.

Talk to Mobas, contact the Mobas team by dropping us an email at: say.hello@mobas.com

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