Thinking Outside The Box – With A Box

Creativity doesn’t start at the design phase.

At Compton Construction, we do things a little differently. There was a day when extra care and craftsmanship were the norm in business.  Hand shakes, real paper proposals and in person conversations was how business development was conducted. The web and the ease of digital sharing has removed the personal touch and relationship building commerce once took. We recently took an “innovative” approach to a sales proposal, to build a one-of-a-kind brewery.

If you are close to Compton Construction, you may have heard about the opportunity we had to bid on the BrewDog brewing facility coming to the Columbus area. As a family owned general contractor, we were up against some of the largest builders in Columbus. The competition had more experience and more employees. The size of the project demanded the biggest and best contractors around. It was an honor in itself to be at the table, and considered for the project at an early stage in our company history.

We knew that we needed to do something differently. We wanted to grab the attention of the BrewDog owners and stakeholders. We partnered with Danis to collaborate and level the playing field on company size and experience.  However, we had to demonstrate our creativity and attention to detail to have any shot at building the facility. We needed to “think outside the box.”

After brainstorming a bit, we thought, why not use the talents of the Compton Construction team and create a one of a kind proposal box. Under President Blake’s leadership, he began researching and conceptualizing what we would create:

Compton Construction Estimator/Drafter, Jeremy – Box Design in CAD, CNC Millwork, Laser operation
Compton Construction Marketing Director, Adam – Box Construction, CNC Millwork, Varnish, Marketing
Compton Construction Vice President, Steven – Home Brewed Beer
Columbus Idea Foundry (Past Client and Partner) – CNC, Laser, Hand Forged Bottle Opener
ZoCo Design – Graphics and artwork
Danis – Construction Partner – BrewDog USA Proposal

Our team did extensive research on the BrewDog brand. We spent hours studying their language and use of graphics, with the goal of matching the BrewDog swagger and confidence. We wanted to connect our language to their branding. We wanted to take down the “fat-cats”  just as BrewDog does.

The artwork on the box cover pays homage to the early designs as BrewDog first started out. They used hand drawn line art, and have a little bit of “quirkyness” to their designs. We added a tribute to “Mr. Stout” and “The End of History”, along with iconic beer ingredients.

The swagger continued on the inside with a 3 tier experience. First, the “We Build Breweries” booklet included a complete story of Compton Construction with our experience, who we are, and why we are expert brewery builders. Under that, is the proposal on what it takes to build the facility. Finally, the handcrafted beers with the forged opener and flash drive with all the information required.

Overall, we have not been more proud of a proposal, or the efforts of our team. There were five contractors with the chance of building the facility.  After it was all said and done, we learned that we were the only contractor to submit anything in person, and all others sent in digital materials. The stakeholders were impressed with our package, and we gained their attention.  Although we did not get awarded the BrewDog brewery project, we gained an experience that we are grateful for.

Creativity is one of the foundations Compton Construction is built on. We take pride in adding unique touches to all our projects. Creativity doesn’t start at the design phase. Let us show you the Compton Construction difference.