to home

“Substance grasped our design needs immediately and gave us a fresh, innovative way to present our message. They are always responsive and flexible – no matter what changes come during the work process. Their creativity and originality have been impressive, and we’re looking forward to working with them for years to come.”

–– Maggie Berndt, Illinois Humanities Council
Substance. It's more important than style.

Substance works collaboratively with clients on interactive solutions, print collateral, and corporate identity for corporate and not-for-profit clients.

We pride ourselves on developing visual communication that is driven by the strategic objectives of our clients, not by stylistic trends that grow dated quickly. That is the driving force behind our design ethic, and why we call ourselves Substance.

About Our Founder
Substance was founded by Matthew Brett in 2005. Matthew began his professional graphic design career in 1992 producing corporate branding programs, print collateral, and interactive design. He has developed visual identity solutions for clients such as Eli Lilly, Target, the University of Chicago, Caterpillar, Deloitte and AIDS Foundation of Chicago.

His work has been recognized by such publications as Communication Arts, Print Regional Design Annual, Creativity, Graphic Design:USA, UnderConsideration and The One Show. The website he developed for UMB Bank was cited by CIO Magazine as one of the 50 Best Sites of the Year.

Matthew received his BFA in Graphic Design from Kent State University. He has been a guest lecturer and design critic at the University of Notre Dame and Columbia College of Chicago.