Commercial Type is a joint venture between Paul Barnes and Christian Schwartz, who have collaborated since 2004 on various typeface projects, most notably the award winning Guardian Egyptian. The company publishes retail fonts developed by Schwartz and Barnes, their staff, and outside collaborators, and also represents the two when they work together on typedesign projects.
Following the redesign of The Guardian, as part of the team headed by Mark Porter, Schwartz and Barnes were awarded the Black Pencil from the D&AD. The team were also nominated for the Design Museum’s ‘Designer of the Year’ prize. In September 2006, Barnes and Schwartz were named two of the 40 most influential designers under 40 in Wallpaper*.