In early May, the design community gathered in Los Angeles for Legends, a world-recognized design week that draws attendees from across the U.S and abroad. The theme this year was Wanderlust, which underscored a travel-inspired week of panel discussions and social events, hosted in artfully designed settings and showrooms.

Hanna Creative Co. was hired to lead event coverage and content strategy for the four-day event, which took place at multiple locations in and around West Hollywood. As an event sponsor, we were invested in creating something memorable that would be a fresh take on the annual gathering. For two months we worked closely with the event organizers, formerly the La Cienega Design Quarter, now renamed Design Los Angeles. “This year was not business as usual,” said Rebecca Birdwell, the event director and master of ceremonies. “Los Angeles is still recovering from the devastating fires, and we wanted to reinvigorate the design community and make it fun and informative. We launched Design Los Angeles as a brand refresh with exciting programming that would bring together the best in design, art, culture, and lifestyle.”

Establishing a Strong Visual Identity

Because the organization had just rebranded there were limited brand assets available to work with. To appeal to a broader, design-focused audience, the Hanna Creative Co. team introduced bold new visual elements—like striking typefaces—to create a strong and recognizable brand identity. The distinctive “Wanderlust red” added a cohesive, thematic touch that subtly unified all materials. “The visual branding and motion design had to work hand-in-hand to build recognition,” said Roxanne Hanna, Founder and Creative Director of Hanna Creative Co. “The goal was to create a dynamic social experience that would resonate with a wider audience as the event continues to grow.”

Keeping It Fresh with Motion Design

Covering social media for a week-long event with multiple stakeholders, sponsors, and locations takes a lot of advance planning—and thinking on your feet. Our social team worked with the design team to fine-tune the creative direction and tailor social content to specific subjects, showrooms, and brands. Several team members roamed the various showrooms and covered panel discussions to capture video and still photography and conduct behind-the-scenes interviews. “We were looking to capture the energy of the room and the smaller moments as well as the highlights,” said Sydney McNall, social media specialist and motion graphic designer for Hanna Creative Co. For the event feed, we used a mix of graphically created content and strong imagery, alternating the lead image so the feed always looked fresh. “Since there were limited visual assets available we leveraged motion design to keep reels visually engaging.”

Account Growth and Organic Performance

The introduction of new branding and a strategic social media approach made Design LA 2025 the event’s best-performing year. Engagement far exceeded benchmarks from previous years, with more than 634K account views at peak. The highest performing reel outperformed last year’s highest-viewed reel by 10x. Collaborator requests proved a successful tactic to broaden audience reach and get more eyes on the account.

Covering social media for an event of this scale was an exciting opportunity for our team, and the experience provided valuable insights for future event coverage, which we were excited to share with the event’s board and stakeholders. “Roxanne and her team did an amazing job with just a couple months to plan and little to work with,” said Rebecca Birdwell. “It really helps that they know the industry so well, the designers, the architects, and the target audience. The views were great and the numbers speak to the social strategy and how well it was received. We’ve already started planning for next year and I’m really excited to build on our success.”