Customer individualisation is the future of product development and retail. That conviction didn't come from theory — it came from having to design something new for every single client, over and over, without a reliable method.

Early on, I worked with trained colour stylists and used their colour analysis as the foundation for design. One case made the gap clear: a stylist referred a client in her fifties, planning her second wedding, with a moodboard built on the colour analysis — colours, shapes, silhouette, and a dress, all shown on a 21-year-old model. The client said, rightly, "That's not me": the concept simply wasn't realistic for who she was. The colours were correct — colour typology and design language are simply two different things. And clients themselves couldn't tell me what to design either; that's not something you can expect from them.

So I built my own system: one that reads how a client actually functions in design language, before a single sketch is made. What started as a way to solve my own problem — designing accurately for one person at a time — is now the B2B tool I offer brand clients: a way to build a sharper customer journey, increase conversion, and turn one-time buyers into long-term customers.

The result is M.A.T.T. — a method that layers four independent bodies of knowledge on top of one another: colour Metaphor theory, Archetype models rooted in behavioural science (including the DISC model and roles from naturopathic knowledge), the Temperament theory of Galen, and classical colour Typology. Each framework remains legible on its own and follows its own logic — it is precisely this deliberate overlay that defines the model's originality.

Combined, these four layers form M.A.T.T.: a unique method for uncovering a client's or brand's design language — and designing individually around it.

Want to see how this works for you? I've put together a free, quick M.A.T.T. assessment [M.A.T.T. SHORT TEST] that gives you a first read on your own design language — I personally follow up with the result and the recommendations behind it.

"A client can't tell you what to design. But their design language already tells you everything — if you know how to read it."

— Claudia van Rehm