Welcome ACE, Cut the Code, DotControl, Lava and Merlin Studio

Amsterdam, Tuesday, 12 December 2023

Dutch Digital Design welcomes five great, new partner agencies: ACE, Cut the Code, DotControl, Lava and Merlin Studio. This means that our Dutch Digital Design foundation is now a collective of 34 partners: working together to share knowledge and a vision for now and the future, expand our (inter)national presence, and be a close-knit community of creative peers.

Being a collective of creative partners increases the appeal to potential clients, business partners and talent - on a national and international level. Also, the foundation curates and shares interactive work, distributes thought leadership articles through (inter)national media channels, and provides speakers for events abroad and here in the Netherlands - including Dutch Design Week and SXSW.

ACE

ACE is a network of twelve agencies based in Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Utrecht. Rogier IJzermans (founder): ‘We care a lot about the digital industry. This is how ACE has come about. The fast changing world we live in, is shaped by culture and technology. Just look at the rise and influence of AI. It is important that we continue to develop our industry, and position ourselves firmly within this field. This way we will continue to be relevant to all brands we work with. Born05 was already a Dutch Digital Design partner agency (part of ACE). Great that ACE is part of the collective too now.’

Cut the Code

Cut the Code is the first no-code agency in the Netherlands. Why? The combination of this approach together with design allows for development of more efficient platforms and websites. Erwin Luijendijk (founder): ‘We want to be innovative without giving ourselves limitations with regards to the design: we believe that speed and aesthetics can definitely work together. By joining Dutch Digital Design, we can share our vision, and contribute to this new approach - this balance between speed and aesthetics - in our industry. We envisage a future where unique and seamless digital experiences can strengthen the Dutch reputation in design and technology.’

DotControl

Data-driven digital agency DotControl specialises in communication, digital products and e-commerce. They have offices in Rotterdam, Heerlen and overseas, in Curaçao. Marcel van Zwieten (managing creative partner): ‘Design, innovation and interaction are the areas we focus on as an agency. Exactly the reason why we feel at home at Dutch Digital Design. The future of the Netherlands within this field is promising: a lot of talent is surfacing, and we - as a country - are embracing the tools of this new era. This is why I predict an increase of projects with far richer web experiences.’

Lava

Branding-and design studio Lava was founded in 1990. Two years ago a completely new management team took over. Lava specialises in bringing brand identities alive and bespoke interactive tools. Lars Terhorst (managing director): ‘Our team is convinced that sharing knowledge is crucial to encourage and stimulate innovation. We believe that Dutch Digital Design can play an important role here. We see a future where the digital and physical worlds merge, where brands survive that can adapt, relate and evolve in real time - just like living organisms.

Merlin Studio

Merlin Studio - a creative code boutique based in Haarlem - collaborates with agencies to fuse technology and creativity into interactive campaigns. Mees Rutten (co-founder): ‘It is a true honour to be part of this collective of the best Dutch digital agencies. We have grown incredibly fast, which suits our DNA. We spend a lot of time training and educating digital talent. Because it is all about communication and quality for us. We look positively to the future. A future where we - together with Dutch Digital Design - can encourage a more personal, smarter and greener way of living.’

If you - after reading this - have any questions for us, please send us an email: [email protected].