OLIVER, HOWARD

OLIVER, HOWARD has the look of a one-name professional business, the kind that might be a consultancy, a solo practice, or another small service outfit. By our assessment, the appeal is the direct line between the name and the work: there is usually no corporate gloss to get in the way. The downside is that this format stays narrow, and the name alone gives outsiders almost no picture of what is sold. In practice it tends to feel quiet, local, and a bit old-fashioned beside a branded firm with a broader public face. OLIVER, HOWARD sits in the private-service end of its field, and it rises or falls with the person behind it rather than with any large corporate machine.