Scalebar — engagement shapes

Mark 1 · Brief

Mark 2 · Read

Mark 3 · Mark

Mark 4 · Draft

Mark 5 · File

Advisory

Periodic counsel on architecture and message hierarchy. You retain production; we read, mark and return written notes. Suits teams with strong in-house execution who need a senior second read.

Working sprint

Focused studio days on one problem — usually architecture or launch planning. Delivers a bound memo and a walk-through on Moh Guan Terrace or by video. Requires consolidated materials beforehand.

Project

Defined scope from brief to handover: architecture, direction, editorial production or launch comms as named in the letter. One approver on your side, proof sessions on a fixed rhythm.

Retainer

Standing studio access with monthly proof sessions and filed handover at month end. Direction and editorial cycles rotate per the agreed cover sheet. Suits teams with ongoing programme work.

Launch support

Concentrated support around a named launch or milestone week: holding statements, internal talking points, channel sequence and timing gates. Often follows a project or retainer phase.

Reading the scale

Each shape above corresponds to a segment between ticks. Mark 1 is brief intake: you send materials, we acknowledge receipt and propose a read schedule. Mark 2 is the read itself — architecture memo draft. Mark 3 is marking: blue-pencil queries returned to you. Mark 4 is drafting production assets. Mark 5 is filing the handover index.

Shapes can be combined. A launch quarter includes all five marks repeatedly. An architecture sprint may stop at Mark 3 if you only need the spine document.

We do not publish commercial terms on this site. Scope letters describe studio days reserved and deliverables listed. Nothing here promises a particular commercial result.

Reference shelf · Mark 2 read materials

Choosing a shape

Site Visit is the usual starting point when you are unsure which shape fits. We ask about timelines, internal approvers and existing assets, then recommend a scale segment in writing.

Retainer clients often begin with a launch quarter and narrow to editorial month cycles once systems are filed. That transition is documented on the handover index so nothing is lost between phases.

Contact details sit on Stairfoot. We reply Mon–Thu 09:00–18:00 and Fri 09:00–17:00 SGT when messages arrive during those windows.

Mark 2 read time varies by material volume. A single product launch brief might be read in two days; a folder with legacy decks and conflicting style guides can take a week before we mark queries. We tell you which case applies before we start.

Direction fortnights assume architecture exists or arrives simultaneously. Launch quarters assume an assigned approver on your side with forty-eight-hour turnaround on blue line passes. Retainers assume monthly filing — handover indexes stack by month in your shared drive.

Scale shapes are not tiers of quality. They are depths of involvement. An architecture sprint receives the same proof discipline as a launch quarter; the difference is scope boundary, not attention.

Calendar expectations

Architecture sprints exclude public holidays in Singapore unless you request calendar days explicitly. Direction fortnights assume one consolidated feedback round from your side.

Editorial months include four proof sessions on average — weekly except when a week is marked reading week for your internal team.

Half-day increments are the smallest unit named in scope letters. We do not book quarter-day slots because handover filing requires a minimum administrative close on any studio day used.

Tiong Bahru estate — scale reference map