Calm in a
digital storm

With decades of experience in design and digital communications, we make creative work feel clear, structured and manageable.

In a fast-moving digital world, brands can easily become inconsistent or overwhelmed. We bring focus back to what matters — thoughtful design that is purposeful, practical and built to be used.

Why We Started Salma

We’ve both spent years working alongside purpose-led organisations and growing businesses. We’ve seen firsthand how much internal teams juggle from program management, stakeholders, reporting, strategy, and delivery — often with limited time and even tighter budgets.

What’s often missing isn’t ideas. It’s capacity.

Salma Blue Studio was built to bridge the gap between “doing it all yourself” and hiring a large agency. We offer steady, strategic creative support that feels embedded — not outsourced.

Because we believe meaningful work deserves thoughtful design and marketing.

Our Team

Tess McCartney

BBus

Tess has a way of stepping into a client’s world, quickly. It’s as if she is already sitting in the office, understanding the constraints, the nuance and the pressures before the brief is even finished.

She is exceptional at walking the line between creative excellence and brand alignment. She knows how to push design far enough to elevate it, but not so far that it becomes inconsistent or hard for leadership to approve. When Tess commits to something, it gets done effectively and on time.

At Salma Blue Studio, Tess leads creative direction and studio operations, ensuring every brand, campaign and digital asset is thoughtful, consistent and built to hold up over time.

BCM, BPsycSc

Jack starts with the human at the centre. He believes that every solution should make sense to the people it’s designed for.

He brings the rigour of behavioural science into marketing decisions, making sure ideas are not only creative but grounded, compliant and strategically sound.

He is particularly focused on data. The data going in, and the data coming out. Campaigns should not just look good. They should be defensible, measurable and worthy of the investment.

At Salma Blue Studio, Jack leads strategy and marketing planning, helping organisations build structured systems and campaigns they can justify, sustain and grow with confidence.

Jack Onley

How we work with you

We begin with clarity.
Budgets matter, especially in non-profit and purpose driven organisations. We scope carefully, align on deliverables, and outline costs upfront so there are no surprises.
You’ll always know what’s included, what it will cost, when it will be delivered, and what success looks like before we begin.
Once aligned, we embed into your world.
We work as an extension of your team — not an external supplier sitting at arm’s length. With experience across brand, digital marketing and design, we bring structure where capacity is stretched and momentum when it’s needed most.
You gain the outcomes of an in-house team, without the overhead of building one.
When we develop creative, we consider your audience, objectives, and long-term consistency. Strong visuals matter — but only when they work for your organisation.
With Tess and Jack working collaboratively behind the scenes, your project always benefits from two experienced perspectives. Where strategy and execution are considered together — combining shared thinking and streamlined delivery to achieve one clear, cohesive outcome.