The Northern Block is an independent type foundry internationally recognised for producing modernist fonts for brands, creatives and makers.
Our Foundry
Founded in 2006 by Jonathan Hill, The Northern Block’s highly skilled global team has designed an extensive collection of award-winning typefaces. In addition to our library of retail fonts, our team creates custom designs for corporate clients and provides expertise in multi-script languages, including Arabic, Cyrillic, Devanagari, Greek, and Hebrew.
Over the years, The Northern Block has developed a unique and diverse font library—from experimental display typefaces to 90-style, multi-script superfamilies. Our team works with clients and agencies worldwide, creating fonts that define brands. Some of our esteemed partners include Riyadh Air, Disney, Netflix, and Ubisoft. The Northern Block’s ever-growing partnerships with globally recognised brands allow us to keep pushing the boundaries of typeface design.
If you’d like to discuss a custom font project, including modifications or language extensions, please email us and we’ll be happy to help.
Our Origins
The first journey into type design for The Northern Block was long and winding, with no clear, direct route—more of a road to discovery. With no dedicated centres of excellence for type design in the North of England, the learning curve was steeper but no less rewarding.
After a successful career in graphic design, Jonathan began to lay down the foundation for The Northern Block Type Foundry. For the first six years, he worked alone as an independent designer selling typefaces under The Northern Block brand—building a reputation for developing clean, modernist, industrial tech-style designs.
In 2011, Jonathan relocated to the North East of England. From this point forward, the type design journey became much more apparent and better understood. Working alone was no longer an option; Jonathan united the company under a new manifesto—to collaborate with designers and creatives through a shared professional experience to develop purposeful, modern, readable typefaces.
Our Future
Great design doesn’t stand still; it evolves. Between 2012 and 2017, many of our typefaces matured and earned global recognition. But we asked ourselves: How do we ensure they remain relevant for the future? The answer became The Next Series—a bold evolution of our most successful designs.
Built on deep collaboration with clients, The Next Series rethinks and refines our fonts to meet modern demands. Every update starts with listening: how the typefaces are used, what’s needed next, and how we can make them more adaptable, versatile and future-proof.
The result is an elite set of typefaces shaped by world-class specialists. Technological adaptability is built in. Whether for apps, websites or physical spaces, The Next Series is engineered for legibility and performance.
This is more than aesthetic refinement. It’s about enabling global communication, bridging cultures and building designs that last.
Our Core Team
Jonathan Hill
Founder
Jonathan is the founder of The Northern Block and known to wider people in the North as the ‘Fontman’. He began his type design odyssey in the industrial mill towns of Yorkshire surrounded by historic textiles, modern art and the no-nonsense voice of the people. A Draughtsmen at heart with a passion for function, modernism and the understated Jonathan has shaped out a career designing typefaces that are respected and recognised by trusted brands, leading video game developers and global manufacturing companies. Recently his type designs have received international awards as some of the most innovative work in the industry, and with his dedication to connecting, mentoring and nurturing new type design talent, his influence is set to grow stronger.
Scott Briggs
Head of Operations
Scott is our Head of Operations and joined the Company in 2016. He’s originally from Manchester UK, experienced in a range of industries including: Wealth Management, Automotive, and Market Research. Also currently undertaking an MA in Strategic Leadership.
He looks after our Clients as well as everything to do with custom licences, commercials, and operations. In his spare time he is a UEFA licenced football coach.
Donna Wearmouth
Head of Brand
Donna joined The Northern Block as a Designer in 2018. In 2022, she progressed into the role of Head of Brand. A good old-fashioned northerner with a passion for typography, Donna’s philosophy is to create genuine and considered solutions in their purest form, underpinned by a strategic and thorough approach, conceptual thinking, and meticulous attention to detail. A designer with over twelve years of industry experience, Donna’s background in award-winning design agencies has seen her take the lead on a broad range of projects, from small start-ups to global brands. Her work has been recognised and awarded by professional design associations, including The International Society of Typographic Designers, and featured in numerous printed publications.
Tasos Varipatis
Senior Type Designer
Tasos joined The Northern Block in 2022. Based in Zakynthos, Greece, where he has been living and working for the last few years, he studied Graphic Design at Middlesex University London. His love for typography led him to pursue a career as a type designer. He worked for over three years as a designer and font developer for well-established type foundries where he was very closely involved in designing Latin, Greek and Cyrillic scripts, as well as emerging technologies such as variable fonts. In his spare time, he loves spending time with his wife and newborn daughter. He also likes to train for boxing and enjoys cooking.
Our Collaborators
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Aleksander Sukiasov
Alessia Mazzarella
Amélie Bonet
Andreu Balius
Hidetaka Yamasaki
Jamie Chang
Joanna Angulska
Joe Elwell
Kaja Słojewska
Malcolm Wooden
Pablo Balcells -
Azza Alameddine (Arabic)
Erin McLaughlin (Devanagari)
Pooja Saxena (Devanagari)
Liron Lavi Turkenich (Hebrew) -
Dave McDonald, Common Ground
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Dan Clark, The Word Garden
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Alexei Vanyashin (Russian)
Kateryna Korolevtseva (Ukranian)
Vera Evstafieva (Russian)
Foundry Recognition
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2025 | Stencil in Use: A Collection of Stencil Typefaces
2024 | Yearbook of Type #7: Plant Edition
2024 | Communication Arts: Typography Annual 14, January/February 2024
2023 | The World’s Best Typography: The 44th Annual of the Type Directors Club 2023
2023 | Typodarium 2024: A 365 Day Type Calendar
2022 | Typodarium 2023: A 365 Day Type Calendar
2020 | Eye Magazine: Talking About Graphic Design, Issue 100, Summer 2020
2019 | Indie Type: Typefaces and Creative Font Application in Design
2019 | Yearbook of Type #4: Fancy Edition
2019 | Slanted Magazine #34—Europe Edition, Autumn/Winter 2019/2020
2019 | Eye Magazine: Type Now Independence and Originality,
Issue 98, Spring 2019
2018 | Slanted Magazine #32: Dubai Edition, Autumn/Winter 2018/2019 -
2024 | Hiiibrand International Awards
Angusta, Professional Finalist
2023 | Communication Arts Typography Competition
Angusta, Award of Excellence
2023 | TDC69 Competition
Fagun, Certification of Typographic Excellence
2015 | Hiiibrand International Awards
Halcom, Silver Award
2014 | Hiiibrand International Awards
Modum, Merit Award -
2024 | GRANSHAN Design Competition
Tasos Varipatis, Greek Script Specialist
2023–2025 | International Society of Typographic Designers
Donna Wearmouth, Student Awards Assessor -
2018 | TypeCon: Portland, Oregon USA
