# Format Digital

> Format Digital is a Christchurch, New Zealand web design and development studio. A small senior team for strategy-led websites and web apps — the space between a freelancer and a large agency.

Format Digital Ltd (also called Format Digital) is a small senior studio at 153 Waltham Road, Waltham, Christchurch 8023, Canterbury, Aotearoa New Zealand. Clients speak to the people who design and build the work — there are no account-manager handoffs. The studio works with businesses, startups, and agencies in New Zealand and internationally.

**Glen Honeybone** leads design and front-end development, with more than a decade of local and international client work. **Rupert de Paula** leads strategy: a creative director and brand strategist with 15+ years at agencies in Europe and APAC, with work recognised at Best Awards and AGDA.

What the studio is hired for:

- **Custom web development** — Next.js, React, SvelteKit, Sanity CMS, Payload CMS, and TypeScript when content is complex, the product needs real functionality (bookings, dashboards, accounts, integrations), or page speed affects revenue
- **Webflow development** — Webflow plus custom React components via DevLink, for visual editing with proper engineering behind it
- **Agency partnerships** — senior design and development as a white-label or named build partner (including work with Likely Suspects, Strategy, and McCarthy)
- **AI development support** — review, stabilize, and maintain apps built with Cursor, Lovable, ChatGPT, and similar tools before they go to production

Preferred custom stack: React, Next.js, SvelteKit, Sanity CMS, Payload CMS, TypeScript, Webflow with DevLink. Performance, maintainable code, and a usable CMS for the people who run the site after launch are baseline, not extras.

Clients Glen and Rupert have worked with include BBC, Budget Rental Cars, Calder Stewart, ChristchurchNZ, Coca-Cola Amatil, Fulton Hogan, Inspire Foundation, Mike Greer Homes, Ngāi Tahu, NZ Cricket, NZ Institute of Management, Ravensdown, Ryman Healthcare, Systems Advisory Services, and TEDx.

**Who do you usually work with?** Mostly businesses and startups who need more than a brochure site, and brand & design agencies looking for a senior build partner. If the work is complex and you want to talk to the people designing and building it, we're a good fit.

**What technologies do you use?** Whichever is the best fit for the project - we don't force a house stack. Custom sites usually land on React with Next.js or SvelteKit, TypeScript, and a headless CMS like Sanity or Payload. When visual editing and a faster launch matter more, Webflow with custom React via DevLink is often the better call.

**Do you take on Webflow projects?** Yes - including the ones that need custom React and DevLink rather than no-code workarounds. If Webflow isn't the right tool, we'll say so and recommend a custom build instead.

**Do you work with other agencies?** Yes. We can stay behind your brand, plug in alongside your designers and strategists, or be named on the project - whichever fits how you already work. You keep the client relationship; we handle the build.

**Can you help with an app we built using AI?** Yes. We'll audit the actual codebase - architecture, authentication, data, secrets, hosting - and turn it into a production-ready app. Once it's stable, we can stay on for support. If a rebuild is faster and cheaper than patching what you've got, we'll say so.

Contact: https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/contact — phone +64 21 211 0659. Hours Monday–Friday, 08:30–16:30 NZ time.

## Pages

- [Home](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/): Christchurch web design and development studio — strategy-led websites and web apps for businesses, startups, and agencies
- [Work](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/work): Selected websites and web apps designed and built by Format Digital
- [About](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/about): Studio, people, and clients. Glen Honeybone (design & front-end) and Rupert de Paula (strategy)
- [Services](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/services): How Format Digital works: clarity, design, and build. Custom web development, Webflow, agency partnerships, and AI app support
- [Contact](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/contact): 153 Waltham Road, Christchurch 8023 — enquiry form and phone +64 21 211 0659

## Services

- [Custom web development](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/services/custom-web-development): Custom websites and web apps in Christchurch and New Zealand. Next.js, React, SvelteKit, Sanity CMS, Payload CMS, and TypeScript for complex content, product features, and performance-critical sites
- [Webflow development](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/services/webflow-development): Advanced Webflow development with custom React via DevLink — visual editing with real engineering, not plugin workarounds
- [Agency partnerships](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/services/agency-partnerships): White-label or named web development partner for agencies that need senior design and engineering without hiring in-house
- [AI development support](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/services/ai-development-support): Evaluate, stabilize, and maintain apps shipped with AI coding tools (Cursor, Lovable, ChatGPT) before they go to production

## Work

- [Starling Lab](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/work/starling-lab-website): A website that has to earn the trust it argues for — built for the first academic centre proving what is authentic, in an era when generative AI can fabricate anything convincingly. (Web Design, Design System, UX, Development)
- [Mike Greer Investr](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/work/mike-greer-investr-website): A digital platform connecting Kiwis with property investment opportunities, backed by 30 years of building expertise. (Interaction Design + Development, E-Commerce, NextJS, Sanity.io, Typescript)
- [Systems Advisory Services](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/work/systems-advisory-services-website): Making 50 years of critical infrastructure expertise feel anything but dated. (Digital Strategy, UI Design, Development, ReactJS, Webflow + DevLink)
- [NZ Institute of Management](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/work/nz-institute-of-management-website): A new digital home for New Zealand’s leading management training organisation. (Digital Strategy, Design + Development, E-Commerce, NextJS + Sanity.io, Typescript)

## Writing

- [Blog](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/blog): Articles on design systems, AI-assisted development, MCP servers, front-end engineering, and code quality
- [The degradation of development](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/blog/the-degradation-of-development): Two things broke on me within a few hours of each other this week, and neither of them should have.
- [One Dev, A Team of Agents: What the AI Team Model Actually Costs](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/blog/one-dev-a-team-of-agents): The AI team model is a powerful tool, but it's not a one-in, team-out swap. Code quality matters.
- [MCP Servers Give Your AI a Brain for the Real World](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/blog/unpacking-mcp-servers): Your AI can't check your calendar, pull files, or access company data. MCP servers fix that by letting AI connect with real-world tools.
- [What is a Design System?](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/blog/what-is-a-design-system): Explore the magic of design systems: boosting efficiency, fostering teamwork, and scaling gracefully.

## Optional

- [A New Era of Responsive Design: Unpacking CSS Container Queries](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/blog/unpacking-css-container-queries): Uncover the power of CSS container queries in responsive design and how they enhance flexibility, reusability, and maintainability.
- [Privacy](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/privacy): How Format Digital collects and uses enquiry form data
- [Sitemap](https://www.formatdigital.co.nz/sitemap-index.xml): Full list of indexable pages for crawlers
- [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/4832604/): Format Digital company profile
- [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/format_nz/): Studio Instagram