Friendly Service, Disappointing Logo Design
I had high hopes working with Hayden at Defect Design, but unfortunately I came away very disappointed with the end result and don't feel I received value for the money I spent.
I'll try to keep this review as fair and honest as possible.
We first made contact on 26 March 2026, and the final logo concepts weren't delivered until 12 June 2026. Throughout most of the project, communication was good and Hayden was always polite and easy to deal with, which is the main reason I've given 2 stars instead of 1.
The biggest issue was the quality of the logos compared to the portfolio on his instagram and website that convinced me to hire him. I spent a lot of time putting together a detailed description and sent through plenty of logos for reference, so there was no confusion about the direction I wanted to go. Unfortunately, the concepts I received back were nowhere near the same standard or style. They were so different to the examples I had sent that I honestly laughed in disbelief when I first opened them. I wouldn't have been comfortable sending them to a client.
One thing I wish had been clearer from the start or before the actual purchase was the design processes. During the project, Hayden explained that he starts with existing fonts and modifies them into logos rather than creating custom lettering from scratch. There's nothing wrong with that approach, but it wasn't what I expected based on the quality of work I saw on the website. Had I known that beforehand, I would have looked elsewhere. I understand that fully customised lettering can cost significantly more, but I've honestly received several logo concepts on Fiverr that were much closer to what I was after for around 60% less.
I gave detailed feedback throughout the project, sent more references, and even created my own concept to help communicate what I was looking for. After nearly three months and multiple revisions, the final concepts were still very similar to the earlier versions and, in my opinion, still nowhere near the direction I had tried to describe. By that point it was clear we weren't going to reach a result I could use. I'd already paid in full, and despite asking, no partial refund or alternative resolution was offered.
Hayden may be a good fit for people after a different style of logo, but based on my experience I can't recommend Defect Design if you're looking for a more customised typography logo similar to the work showcased on his website or Instagram. I invested a lot of time and money into this project and ultimately walked away with nothing I could use.