Challenge
Design a book that thinks like Wayne
Wayne Deans is a singular figure in Canadian finance.
As the driving force behind Deans Knight Capital Management, he is bold, unsparing, funny, fiercely principled — and famously uninterested in anything that feels corporate or cliché.
So when the Vancouver-based investor approached Echo to mark the firm’s 20th anniversary with a commemorative book, the assignment came with a high-stakes brief:
- It had to reflect the tone and personality of Wayne himself
- It had to feel personal, honest, and meticulously correct
- And it still had to tell the broader story of the firm: a tight-knit group built on conviction, discipline, and long-haul performance
This was not a vanity piece. It was a precision instrument.
The bar was high. And we had to get it exactly right.
Solution
One voice, one firm, one hell of a book
Wayne’s voice shaped everything. From anecdotes about investment bets to reflections on culture, the tone of the manuscript had to match his rhythm, his sharpness, and his humour, with room for humility and contrarian grit.
The title was a natural: Don’t Listen to Everyone With an Opinion.
But it wasn’t a one-man story. We also wove in the perspectives of the firm’s broader leadership team and long-time clients, each helping to frame how the firm had grown without ever bloating.
What emerged was a clear narrative: a firm driven by gut, grounded in values, and built to outperform.
The design had to carry equal weight.
We went with:
- An optimistic, energetic palette of blue, orange, and white
- Crisp layouts built around white space and weight letting the text breathe, just like Wayne does when making a point
- Custom cartoonish illustrations and infographics, and cheeky historic photos, to enliven the text
- Marginal notations and huge block quotes to mirror Wayne’s editorial style: direct, confident, pointed
The book’s aesthetic is equal parts high finance, high craft, and you-better-get-it-right.
Which, for Deans Knight, was the only option.
Result
A book that wears a blazer and running shoes
The finished volume reflects both sides of the firm.
It’s sharp. It’s built to last. And it’s not afraid to say what it means.
Wayne’s voice rings out clearly, telling the story of how the firm weathered market crashes, regulatory shifts, personal loss, and generational change. The team’s collective strength shows through just as clearly in insights about discipline, alignment, mentorship, and how to build a company that sticks.
Staff, clients, and friends received the book with a mix of laughter and recognition (especially all the cursing). “You nailed it,” someone said. “That’s Wayne on every page.”
But it’s also Deans Knight. Steady. Unpretentious. Rare.
One more cool thing...
Design that knows its subject
The design of Don’t Listen to Everyone With an Opinion: 20 Lessons Over 20 Years of Service was almost a character in itself.
The dazzling blue cover with French flaps set the tone before the first word. Inside, type was set in a joyful parade of hierarchies to both educate and entertain.
Visual rhythm mattered: spreads alternated between clean text, handwritten aphorisms, the 20 lessons of the title, told almost as jokes, and whimsical illustrations to remind the reader to get over yourself.
It wasn’t design for design’s sake, or chaos without purpose. It was design that thinks like an investor: clear, deliberate, and impossible to ignore.
Bonus … while most of the books are given as client gifts or used as business development and marketing tools, the firm also sells copies to perfect strangers who want to get their hands on it. Ongoing profits from these book sales are donated to the SPCA. (Wayne’s a huge dog lover.)
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