'Anna' a new admin tool for creative professionals launches in the UK
Anna, a business accounts and admin assistance service aimed at supporting small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the creative industries, has been launched in the UK. Alongside artificial intelligence designed to help save creative professionals hours of admin, the brand has been created by a team including Michael Wolff, illustrator Alice Bowsher and NB Studio.
Promising to help creatives keep on top of both their business finances and accompanying admin, Anna - which stands for Absolutely No-Nonsense Admin - provides an entirely digital platform that addresses the unique needs of SMEs for whom creativity is integral to their business, from design and architecture to independent cafes, distilleries or breweries. Anna has been designed specifically to suit the needs of creative professionals at all levels - from sole traders to established agencies.
Daljit Singh, chief design officer of Anna, said: “As a creative business strategist, I’ve observed the struggles that small business owners go through dealing with admin. The creative industries are worth over £90 billion to the UK economy, yet there isn’t a single service out there that is specially aimed at making running a creative business easier. Anna changes all this; it will improve productivity with the main aim of saving people time so they are freed up to do more of the things they love.”
Nick Finney of NB Studio explained: “Traditionally, there’s no place for emotion in finance; we wanted the visual identity to embody the opposite of that. As a small business owner, you’re there to do something you love. The identity we created features illustrations by Alice Bowsher, whose charming, playful drawings help make Anna an approachable and relatable brand. The warmth of the terracotta orange throughout the website, digital platforms and collateral stands in sharp contrast to the traditional cold blues of banks, corporations and traditional fintech.”
Designer and creative advisor Michael Wolff said: “Meticulous care has gone into developing the brand. Anna is bold yet self-effacing. It’s entertaining because what’s the point of being dull? It is entertaining in an apt and restrained manner. Above everything, Anna is practical and no nonsense. Everything about the brand identity reflects the communities Anna serves.”
Anna is not a bank, rather it combines a business current account, debit card, and a hybrid (human and artificial) intelligence assistant into the Anna current account. This comes with a card that can be accessed through an app.
Alongside the current account, planned features include innovative tools to analyse expenses, chase payments, and predict cash-flow, as well as giving users a clear overview of their finances. Anna can also send and pay invoices.
Anna is currently in beta and currently onboarding its first 2,000 customers, who will have free access to Anna for three years.
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NB Studio
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