When We Began
Journey Group began in 1992 with the design of a single magazine.
The principles that motivated us back then still guide our creative work on behalf of our partners, whether in print or in pixels. In those days, we combined arresting images, dynamic type, narrative design, and best-in-class production to give our clients an edge. For more than 30 years, we have forged our own path, following several guiding lights along the way.
The 1990s /
Journey Group began by designing controlled circulation magazines for faith-based nonprofits and humanitarian organizations. From the beginning, our small team was dogged in the pursuit of technical excellence. We bought the best printers and the best computer graphics software that existed at the time. We drove to press checks and color-corrected paper proofs. We were obsessive about the details—and that much hasn’t changed in the decades since.
The 2000s /
Beginning the decade with 9/11 changed Journey Group’s identity. A day after the towers fell, our team drove to Manhattan, knowing that our clients would need to tell stories and communicate hope. We became visual storytellers on behalf of our partners, providing excellence in journalism alongside excellence in graphic design. This decade also brought on new clients that tripled the size of our company in a few years. We began to explore new avenues for partnership as our team expanded.
The 2010s /
As we grew, Journey Group took on multiple projects in different disciplines for institutions of higher education. We’d built interactive projects on the web before, but this decade marked our targeted pursuit of beautiful, scalable websites and web applications as we found new ways to serve our partners at colleges and universities across the country.
The 2020s /
Journey Group’s cross-disciplinary studio model emerged in this decade. We formed distinct but connected studios of experts, working side by side to solve the chief design challenges our partners faced and continue to face. Through our innovative, nimble studios, we pursue uncommon solutions for the common good, persisting in our belief that institutions represent our best hope for the future.
Where We Are
We think of our space as a physical representation of our shared values. We work in a house that’s over a century old; it’s welcoming and comfortable, suffused with light and designed with an eye for beauty and a love of craft.
Working side by side, in the flesh, remains a Journey Group priority. We believe humans were meant to work alongside other humans toward a shared goal. And we continue to believe that our best work is created when we’re face to face, contending for the best design ideas.
Journey Group is rooted in Charlottesville, Virginia, a beautiful college town at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains. A mere two hours from Washington, DC, we love our proximity to institutional partners—and the quietness and natural beauty of the place we call home.
The offices and studios are redesigned when the mood strikes, contributing to a sense of openness and generosity rather than ownership or possession. Our location a few blocks from Charlottesville’s downtown pedestrian mall means daily work flows into the life of our city, and we cherish this closeness to our broader community.