Interview – Amanda Henderson of Gloss Creative
By Andrea McArthur
CWC Member Amanda Henderson is the Founder and Creative Director of Gloss Creative (Melbourne), one of Australia’s leading visual houses specialising in three-dimensional design and custom made brand environments. Everyday Gloss Creative forges the path for the cross over of Visual Merchandising and Design.
Gloss Creative’s client list is impressive and spans many of Australia’s most style conscious companies in the fashion, luxury and travel industries. Their portfolio includes designs commissioned for brand marquees at the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival, runways, set and event designs for Myer, Penfolds and Omega as well as fashion window concepts and installations for Kookai, Sportsgirl and Emporium.
Simply put, Amanda and the Gloss Creative Team create environments that dreams are made of, and worlds that envelope you in total sensory experiences.
Thank you Amanda for your time and sharing your story with the Creative Womens Circle. There are so many pieces of wisdom in your writing.
Tell us about your background.
I think my story might be typical of many creative people of my generation. I got through my schooling by connecting with all the ‘extra curricular’ activities our school had to offer – I hung out in the drama group and the art room at a time when they were not considered to be ‘real subjects’ or at least not the beginnings of any kind of sustainable career path. I was lucky enough to have forward thinking parents and teachers that validated and encouraged my interests and was I was free to explore the possibilities that might lie ahead.
After a very short year doing drama and economics subjects at uni, I realized that the working world would provide me with a better structure for learning and experimentation than a university.
I had been working at Sportsgirl while I was at school giving out fitting room discs on the weekends, and it was there tht I had wide exposure to complete retail marketing wizardry and creative growth. It wasn’t long before I had entrenched myself in the creativity that visual merchandising provided.
The process of team-based ideas generation and concept development was a critical learning for me at that time and still is the basis on which my team and I design today.
After the birth our two children I returned to work and held National Visual Merchandising Manager positions and Creative Development roles at Sportsgirl and Country Road.
In 2001 I started my best role to date – Founder and Creative Director of Gloss Creative.
Have you always wanted to be a creative business owner?
Not initially. I could say I was looking for a platform where experimentation and collaboration was the everyday. I also was looking for individual recognition for my work – large companies are amazing to be apart of, but sometimes it’s hard to get credit for what you’ve achieved.
As Gloss Creative grew I realized I enjoyed both the creative and business challenges of a small business. We are proof that high quality small design business can successfully work with large organisations.
My business allows me to immerse myself in all aspects of our projects, designing and working with our team. The freedom in the way we work has meant we have been able to work across many different disciplines.
How do you balance your creative projects with the administration / organisation / planning aspect of creative work?
Luckily, Visual Merchandisers have combined skill sets of creativity and practicality - I think this is because we have to deliver dreams into reality. Planning and organisation come naturally as a part of our process.
I’d like to debunk the often misguided theory that “creative types” can not also have business skill sets. Some of the most visionary professionals I know are brilliant business people!
Our team are highly diverse creative people - no one person can have all the attributes to complete a business. It’s the combined headset that makes the magic.
What have been some of the challenges or blessings of keeping Gloss Creative running since 2001? And how has your business focus changed since the beginning?
Honestly, I can only think of blessings. I’ve been able to run a high quality small business together with an amazing team of people and suppliers who have loved creating installations for all some incredible brands. We have had so much fun while we have worked over the last 14 years.
I guess the only continuing challenge is that you’re only ever as good as your last project. Despite our significant body of work we need to prove ourselves for every project, maybe this is why we put so much into each project, so we keep on our toes, we constantly try to bring newness into our work, we love trying new things on every project, its not always comfortable but it can be rewarding!
Our business focus has always been constant: we create ‘Grand Simplicity'. We create emotion with sophisticated visual impact.
How has your employee base grown or have you chosen to keep creative control of your business?
When I started it was only myself and my niece Kimberley Moore. On any Thursday now you’ll find seven people working in our studio. We are still small enough to act like a tribe, so creative control is no problem within our team.
Creative control beyond you team depends on the brands you are working for and the skill level and stakeholder interest for a particular project. You will have radar for this as you grow in experience. Always trust your gut instinct.
You need enough creative control to ensure that your idea remains strong, some times collaborators influence can make things even better! You don’t have to be a control freak but you do need to stick with your creative intent.
What has been you main form of business marketing to date?
Early on I decided that taking high quality photographs of our work by architectural photographers was useful as a record of our work.
I began by sending these images to the design press and they published them. We have always just ‘put our work out there’. Dianna Snape, Marcel Aucar and Rocket Mattler have been constantly photographing our work over the last decade.
We’ve had a website since 2006 and blog since 2010. We are really enjoying the community that Instagram has created!
Gloss Creative is diverse in its scope of work. Has there been a major project that you are particularly proud to share with us?
Mostly I’m proud that each project our team works on is considered with intelligence that each brand deserves. Diversity has provided us with long term inspiration and has meant we haven’t been type cast - every day is interesting.
There are some projects that stay with you as ‘milestone’ projects, the ones that take you to another level of believing in yourself.
Winning a 2013 Australian Interior Design Award for Installation Design for Myer's ‘Shadowlands' was pretty special. I loved that design for its visual emotion and simplicity, and for visual merchandisers to be considered a part of the design industry was a milestone for us. We are proud that maybe in some way we have widened the scope of Visual Merchandising over the last decade, pushing into design markets normally handled by interior designers or architects.
What advice do you have for others who might be considering a jump into a creative business?
You will know when the time is right - a wave of confidence and momentum will over take you and the fear of not following your dream will become bigger than the doubts you may have.
On a more practical level: get a bookkeeper, and hone your craft. Make relationships with people you trust and have fun with.
Always be close to your client. The further away from your client you are the more risk you take on.
What passions keep you creative?
I’m inspired by originality. I’m inspired by anyone who’s creating beauty. Both locally and globally I love theatre, ballet, set design, art, craft, fashion, accessories, store design, illustration, music, should I go on?
What is a typical day for you at Gloss Creative?
Our day starts with coffee and post Offspring analysis usually – no seriously we talk a lot in our studio! Then we get down to it. We talk about designs, we draw and plan, we come up with some bad ideas then work on them until we love them. Steff Dalberto and I might meet with suppliers, present to clients or install our projects. We spend quite a bit of time going up and back to Sydney.
I’m always on the phone talking about our ideas. It’s my role to manage expectations, which is time consuming and often challenging in an environment where creativity and financial management are both important. We love clients that are strategic thinkers, the results are magic if your clients are collaborators !
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Make sure to check out Gloss Creative’s posts on the studio blog and all of their sneak peeks on Instagram (@theglossarium).
Andrea McArthur (www.andyjane.com) has a passion for all things visual and works as a Senior Graphic Designer in Dubai. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. You’ll find her sharing design related musings on Instagram @andyjanemc.
Interview – Tina van den Broek, illustrator and artist
By Andrea McArthur
'Doing what you love' is paramount to artist and CWC Member Tina van den Broek, who also goes by the pseudonym The Food Artist. Tina creates tasty illustrations for businesses, products and services that are looking to spice things up. It's a new and unique industry niche she calls 'Food Communication'!
Tell us about your background. What has led you to starting The Food Artist?
I have a background in visual arts. I did a fine arts degree in Auckland, New Zealand, majoring in sculpture, with minors in printmaking and fibre arts. I also have a keen passion for making food. While studying I worked part time in a restaurant and worked in southern France for six months where I would cook, clean and entertain guests. I gained advertising and marketing skills while working for a boutique agency in New Zealand, and also larger companies like gumtree.com in London. In the last few years I have been working in online marketing.
I decided I wanted to pursue my creative interests by creating a business and life that I loved. Something I did because I enjoyed it, which was extremely specific and told a story. In order to articulate what it is that I do and can offer people, I had to think long and hard about my core values, beliefs and passions.
All my life I have loved food. I enjoy freestyle cooking where I whip something up based on the ingredients at hand. I can cook for hours and be in that same ‘happy place’ I go to when I am making art. Previous to this I was working under the name The Visual Citizen doing illustration, visual arts and face painting, which I still do. It made sense to bring my two passions together: food & illustration. Which is how The Food Artist was born.
What skills have you brought into starting The Food Artist and what business skills are you developing?
I bring with me a lifetime of customer service skills. From the age of nine I worked weekends or after school hours in my parents' milk bar and bulk food store serving customers. I have a love of travel, meeting new people and learning about their life and experiences. I like to use my artistic and creative skills to help people and continue to refine and grow these skills. The Food Artist is quite new actually - I started the business in February 2014 and I am currently trying to develop my business and financial skills.
What mediums do you work in?
I like working in black ink pens, fine-liners, watercolour paints and pencils, metallic pens and coloured pencils.
Who are your main clients at the moment?
My main clients are independent food producers, life coaching mentors, health & wellness bloggers/practitioners, chefs and caterers. I look forward to adding many more in the future.
Tell us about a favourite project that you have worked on.
A favourite project of mine would have been creating illustrations for a forthcoming eats, treats and edible beauty recipe book. I was lucky enough to taste a lot of the recipes and I believe that helped me draw them! I also got to try the edible beauty treatments, which blew me away with their tasty ingredients that I just wanted to eat. I learnt a lot about ingredients from this job as the author has food intolerances.
Do you have a favourite restaurant that you frequent or a favourite recipe that you cook?
I’m more of a 'whip something up at home' kind of girl and I enjoy cooking ratatouille, home made banana ice cream, or kitty cat pikelets (which are pikelets made in the shape of a cat).
What advice do you have for others who might be considering a jump into a creative business?
My advice would be that you can’t do everything yourself so get help – a business mentor/coach, have people you can rely on for support and outsource what you can. There is always something you can work on so accept it and set yourself tasks rather than working yourself into the ground in a never-ending attempt to finish just one more thing. Last but not least, believe in yourself and never give up, sometimes things just don’t work so you learn from your mistakes and try another approach.
What future goals do you have for your creative pursuits?
My future goals are to illustrate a colouring in book and children’s book. To take my illustrations from 2D to 3D and do visual merchandising, styling, installations, collaborate with set designers or prop makers on TV, film or music videos. I would also like to license my artworks for use on products.
Thank you Tina for your time and sharing your story with us! Follow The Food Artist adventures on Instagram @thefoodartist and Facebook /TheFoodArtist or for more foodie goodness and to see Tina's work, visit www.thefoodartist.com.au.
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Andrea McArthur (www.andyjane.com) has a passion for all things visual and works as a Senior Graphic Designer in Dubai. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. You’ll find her sharing design related musings on Instagram @andyjanemc.
Interview – Kelly Holcroft of That Vintage Caravan
By Andrea McArthur
Kelly Holcroft’s path to owning and operating Sydney’s first caravan bar, ‘That Vintage Caravan’, is one of passion, a desire to put heart and soul into doing what you love and an unplanned business. After falling for a caravan intended solely to store the remaining items from her "vintage extravaganza" wedding, Kelly's first caravan "Sweet Jane" was converted into a pink Travelling Teahouse, never actually to be used as storage. From that time ‘That Vintage Caravan’ was born and Kelly has been adding to her family of travelling caravan's with the recent addition of "Spencer" (a more masculine character!).
Usually a creator of experiences for her guests, today Kelly shares some of her own experiences on her ‘That Vintage Caravan’ journey with us!
Kelly, please describe the concept of ‘That Vintage Caravan’.
Our set up is perfect for those looking to create a memorable experience for their guests – one that is talked about for years to come!
Available for hire our beautiful vans are stylish, charming and offer a unique service. They’re perfect for a wedding, engagement party, bucks or hen’s day, kitchen tea, bridal shower, birthday corporate gig, product launch, Christmas gathering – any occasion really! From our handsome vintage mobile bar (Spencer) and delightful travelling teahouse (Sweet Jane) we offer a range of catering options to suit all tastes and budgets - including a simple drinks package morning or afternoon nibbles or a full morning High Tea experience. We’re on wheels so can bring our old world style to you at any place or time. ‘That Vintage Caravan’ is also available to attend fairs, festivals, fetes and as well as private photo shoots.
Can you share your vision of a great event or gathering?
A fabulous party always has a theme or includes an element of surprise (like a vintage caravan bar)! It also involves great company, great music, great food (and wine) and gives people a reason to unite and celebrate in the name of FUN!
Have you always had a passion for vintage?
I love collecting things with a history or a story. It makes them more interesting and precious. I also love a bit of up-cycling. There’s nothing better than giving old stuff a new life. As a child I was constantly crafting so I think it is just a natural progression. I got a new sander for mother’s day last year – it was the best present ever! What led you to making the leap from events to ‘That Vintage Caravan’ business owner? I have worked in finance for the last 7 years and that’s the main reason I started this business. I needed something else in my life other than numbers… a creative outlet and a project that I was passionate about.
The leap wasn’t planned. Things slowly came together after my hubby and I got married. The wedding was a vintage extravaganza. Following the big day I found it hard to part with my special treasures. My collection in fact continued to grow. With our little house bursting at the seams we (my hubby) decided I needed more space and suggested a caravan would be a good space to store my bits and pieces. And it just went from there!
The first van was purchased from the Southern Highlands (it was never used as storage). Sweet Jane is a Travelling Teahouse. She took about 9 months to convert. My handsome Spencer (a mobile bar) followed about 9 months later. He’s the new man in my life!
What skills have you brought over from your previous career experiences into ‘That Vintage Caravan’?
I have been in communications, events and marketing for last 20 years so I guess I bring all of those skills with me. I’ve worked across a variety of fields including the not for profit sector, financial services and local Government. In what seems like a lifetime ago I was also a teacher.
How did you devise the caravan's personalities, Spencer and Ms Sweet Jane?
The personality for each van came easy. Spencer is named after the Charlie Chaplin (aka Sir Charles Spencer). He was a strong, iconic character who made people feel happy… and that’s what I want my business to do. Jane gets her identity from Jane Austen one of my all time favourite authors.
What are your favourite events to work on?
Hard to say really, I love all of the parties that I do for different reasons. We’ve helped celebrate weddings, engagements, Christmas parties, baby showers and hen’s days. Actually I did a 100th birthday not so long ago. That was pretty spesh! Not many get the chance to be involved in such a significant event. It was a really beautiful day, filled with love and joy.
What does a typical day at work involve for you?
I am a bit of a night owl and do my best work late in the evening. My biz is a one lady show so I do it all. I still work 3 days a week (in finance) so I just try to fit things in where I can. There is no routine. I am very lucky to have a supportive partner and a great family who help me – which makes things so much easier.
Where to from here with That Vintage Caravan?
I’d love a fleet of vintage caravans. That’d make me a happy little camper!
What advice do you have for others who might be considering a jump into a small business?
An old boss once told me ‘fake it till you make it’ nobody really knows what they’re doing so smile, be confident and just keep going! And you know what? It’s true!
I use this saying when I start to feel lost or insecure things about how ‘wonderful’ everybody is. Creating a business is daunting. There are so many things to learn and just when you think you’ve got it under control something else pops up. You need to be true to yourself, trust your instincts and work hard!
Thank you Kelly for your time and sharing your story with us! For more vintage goodness follow That Vintage Caravans' adventures on Instagram instagram.com/thatvintagecaravan and to find out more details about Kelly's unique setup go to www.thatvintagecaravan.com.au. _
Andrea McArthur (www.andyjane.com) has a passion for all things visual and works as a Senior Graphic Designer at StartJG Middle East – Dubai. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. You’ll find her sharing design related musings via Twitter and Instagram @andyjanemc.
Interview – Kylie Lewis, Of Kin
By Andrea McArthur
Kylie Lewis is a Social Media Guru who guides businesses through the waters of online media and content. Her daily mission is to move and inspire people to think more about the things that truly matter to them. Kylie is a woman with a passion for what she does and has a passion for life.
Where did your passion for communication come from?
In primary school I wanted to be a nurse. Then a teacher. In high school I wanted to be journalist, then a youth counsellor. So way back in the day I did a double degree in psychology and sociology. While I was studying I also became a Fitness Instructor and taught group fitness classes. Graduating in a recession, the social sector didn’t seem so lucrative, so I tumbled my way into the business admin and then deliberately pursued ‘internet’ opportunities in the late 90s.
I landed in the first Melbourne Fairfax rollout team for US startup CitySearch, hitting the road selling template websites to small business. I loved how the web offered these little, local businesses a level playing field with the big guys, and that they had a new and powerful way to communicate their messages to the world (I still love this today). This was before most people even knew what a web address was. We were converting email messages to faxes, and Zuckerberg was in kindergarten (*sigh*).
Throughout the years I worked in startups in both the business-to-business and consumer sector, did a stint in a traditional marketing role and then came back to another startup, just as social media was starting to take off. I then jumped to head a small digital agency for a while before grabbing a dream role as Head of Digital for one of my all time favourite brands, kikki.K.
Somewhere in the midst of that I did a Masters in Business (eBusiness & Communication) and started a family. I went back to Fitness Instructing after I had my first child, and started freelance blog writing about 3 years after my second was born.
While I loved my time at kikki.K, I’d reached a point in my life when I needed more flexibility than the job would allow, and I craved the time and space to design a working life that could work around me. Deciding to leave was really tough, but I’d crafted myself a motivating Pinterest board (pinterest.com/kylielewis/wisely) to help push me in the right direction, and already had a few freelance gigs under my belt to help get me over the line. After that it was holding tight, taking a breath and making the jump.
A few of my biggest strengths are a love of learning and curiosity. These have definitely helped me work in the digital space, given how fast it changes, and the scope of knowledge there is to digest. And I love a good chat, a nice cup of tea and have a severe stationery addiction. So it wasn’t a stretch to become a consultant!
I realise now that my work as a digital strategist and fitness instructor, my childhood aspirations of becoming a nurse, teacher, journalist and counsellor have all actually come to be!
Can you describe the function of a Digital Strategist for us?
I help people come to grips with social media, content marketing and digital strategy in a way that makes sense for them. I’m driven to move people’s thinking and build their confidence, so that they’re empowered to help themselves. I do this by sharing what I know with people through one on one coaching, consulting with small business teams, and public workshops.
As a digital strategist, my favourite question to ask is ‘why do you do what you do?’ My next favourite question is ‘where do you want to be?’ And then ‘what are your biggest challenges right now?’ When we can get those three things sorted, we can start building a strategy and crafting solutions. This could be facilitating a team discussion to define their content marketing mission statement, to identifying their buyer personas, to category sorting their proposed blog content, to running customised masterclasses on Pinterest and Instagram, to planning out a content calendar. I’ve worked in digital for over 15 years, so you can throw pretty much anything ‘webby’ at me, and I’ll help you find your way through it.
What does a typical day at work involve for you?
At the moment I’m writing a book, so I’m trying to be an early riser and get a few hours writing in before the rest of my house wakes up. Then its making breakfasts, school lunches and going for a run while the kids get taken to school. I’m loving listening to podcasts while I’m running at the moment – NPR TED Radio Hour, and HBR Idea Cast and Dan Pink are my favourites at the moment. I bypass my local on the way home and while I’m waiting for my takeaway chai latte to steep, I get a bit of stretching in.
Home to shower where I do a LOT of thinking! I’ll reconfirm my priorities I set the night before (a great tip from Lyndall Mitchell, my life coach, is ‘tomorrow starts today’) and get started.
Sometimes I’m onsite with client doing a coaching session or a team workshop, sometimes I’m at my studio planning, researching and writing, and sometimes I’ll squeeze in a lunch with a friends or a nana nap (because those 5am starts catch up on you!). I’m constantly surprised with how much planning goes into managing my week – I spend a good portion of Mondays planning out the weeks ahead and setting myself up to be productive (well, that’s what I tell myself!).
I’m trying to get better at checking my emails only at set points during the day (another tip from Lyndall – only check your email when you’re ready to handle it), so that I find flow with my writing and thinking. I’m also drawing on the Pomodoro Technique (of working in 25 minute spurts) and using Focus at Will for music designed to help keep focus when writing.
School pick up zooms around pretty quickly, and then it’s the usual kids activities and food prep shenanigans. After the kids go to bed, I might do a few more hours work, teach a fitness class, read or actually have a meaningful conversation with my husband!
What was the experience like, to go from being full time employed to becoming a self employed Communications Consultant?
Terrifying. I woke up every day for three weeks in a heart pounding panic saying ‘what have I done?’ I loved my job, but was worn out and needed more flexibility than the position could offer. We spoke to our bank manager before I left my job and knew I could afford to take the risk for a decent length of time. I was still freelancing on the side which helped. I kept saying ‘worse case, I’ll get another job.’ So far, I haven’t needed Plan B.
My biggest challenge in working for myself is boundaries – trying to pace the amount of work I take on at a given time, and carefully choosing who I want to work with and the type of work I want to be doing. I’m a work in progress.
Who have been your business inspirations and how have they inspired yourself or your business practices?
Tony Schwartz and his Energy Project movement. I read ‘The Power of Full Engagement’ three summers ago and it changed my life. I knew in my heart of hearts I could not sustain the pace of full time work, running a family, a house and doing freelance, but it took me a while to work out how to find a way through it. I now try to honour my needs for rest and renewal and be mindful about managing my energy across my physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs. I don’t always get it right, but I’m chipping away at it.
Then along came Brené Brown and her work on vulnerability, perfectionism and scarcity – the ‘scarcity’ of never being/doing/having enough. This woman has decoded what it is to be human. I’m sure if her research was around when I was back studying sociology and psychology I would have run away and formed a cult in her hometown in Texas (I still might…!). Given the anxiety many business people feel about trying to do it all perfectly, particularly about participating online and in social media, I draw on her work a lot to build people’s confidence, and help give themselves a break.
In your CWC bio you write that you are a blogger. Is your blog a mirror of who you are as a person?
My personal blog/journal on my website is something new for me, which I’m still developing and exploring. For the last eight years I’ve blogged for the businesses I’ve worked for and rarely had the time to blog for myself. I still blog for businesses (over at Life Instyle and Reed Gift Fairs), but I’m loving curating my own stories in my own space. And yes, it’s very much a journal of the things, people and words that personally move me (and I hope you too!)
Your journal is an inspiring read, especially your journey of 2013. What a big year... how can you top that in 2014?
You know, I didn’t set out planning to have such a big year in 2013. In fact, my plan was to take a sabbatical for a few months! What I found was, when I started giving myself permission and space to go towards the people and places that I was drawn to, and honour my true interests, doors opened up. And then there was the serendipitous universe… a guy I hadn’t spoken to in 17 years contacted me on LinkedIn out of the blue with a job opportunity (and I hadn’t even changed my position title from kikki.K at that stage). That kind of thing happened a lot last year.
Stuff just happened when I learned to breathe. So for 2014, I really want to keep doing more of that.
Have there been any social media brand strategy's that have inspired or engaged you lately?
Most recently it would have be Target USA teaming with top pinners to create party products to sell in store. The first collection is with Joy Cho from Oh Joy who has over 13million Pinterest followers (while Target themselves have 150k). The collection is beautiful and my feeds are full of pretty party set ups. Well played, Target.
Who Give’s a Crap is a social enterprise selling toilet paper, with 50% of profits going to improving sanitation in developing countries. They crowdfunded their initial seed fun with a great campaign on IndieGoGo - they live streamed the founder sitting on a loo until the initial $50,000 was raised. You can watch the video and read all about it on their website. Their product is beautifully designed, surprising and delighting. You can’t help but Instagram when your order has arrived. I know. I never thought I’d 'gram TeePee either.
Wittner’s savvy collaboration with Australian fashion bloggers is brilliant. They cleverly use the content from the collaborations across all their platforms from their own blog content, to email marketing, to social media feeds. (Did I mention I have a shoe buying problem?)
I love, love, love Black Milk Clothing for their story, their nylon loving community and their furry friends. Read their About Us page on their website and see photos of their customers of all sizes and shapes wearing their R2D2 and C3PO leggings and getting the love. My Hans Solo and Chewbacca legging are in the post.
West Elm’s inclusion of Etsy sellers instore and doing events with high profile bloggers is awesome. Great excuse to party!
The Holistic Ingredient enticed her 50K Instagram followers to sign up to her subscriber database on her website with a free snack recipe book. Hooked me!
From your past experiences is there a consistent mistake that most small businesses make with their social media plan?
Firstly it’s about actually making a plan! Making a plan built on understanding your customers dilemmas and desires and then bringing your own expertise and passion to them isn’t as straightforward as it sounds. It requires some space and quiet time to be challenged and think. And many businesses get so caught up in the ‘doing’ of their businesses, they work against themselves by not stopping to plan, and make their load easier to carry.
Discipline to stick to the plan is the next thing. Setting up weekly rhythms, support systems and automated tool to help with that is key.
The other thing would be relying only on social media for communicating with customers, and forgetting to always be building their list of email addresses on their own database. I’ve read stories about Facebook and Instagram closing down business accounts to the horror of those businesses – businesses need to remember that they don’t ‘own’ spaces on social media, but they do own their database.
And lastly, in the online space ‘you are what you publish’. Publish regularly from your heart, to the heart of your customers.
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Thank you Kylie for your time and sharing your webby insights with us!
Kylie, alongside Belinda Langler of The Inkling Effect, recently held a Social Media and Content Marketing Class in Melbourne called "Content Kin" in early April. It was an extremely successful and informative event where the attendees made creative spaces, by utilising hands on tools and making actionable plans. The key tools used throughout the day were mindmaps, sharpies, post-its and big sheets of kraft paper, the end of the workshop concluded with each attendee walking away with their own content marketing mission, buyer personas, social media stats and a plan that they can implement over the next six months. If you missed this session contact Kylie kylie@ofkin.com for information on how she can help you develop your own content.
Follow Kylie's Of Kin blog at ofkin.com/blog, or find her @ofkin on Twitter and Instagram.
Andrea McArthur has a passion for all things visual and works as a Senior Graphic Designer at a branding agency in Dubai. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. You'll find her sharing design related musings via Twitter and Instagram
Interview – Anna Ross of Kester Black
By Andrea McArthur
Recently you may have noticed that there has been an unprecedented rise in the level of interest in nail art and nail polish. You'll find that there’s even a strong nail art blogging community on the rise (take a look on Kester Blacks Pinterest to see a few Bloggers work). If you were asked to describe nail polish in just one word, I would use – fun. Nails are no longer just manicures, they can truly be coordinated to any look and have become the finishing accessory to an outfit.
Launched in August 2012, Kester Black nail polish was borne out of a passion to run a creative business and create an ethical, all-Australian product. In this interview, Anna Ross – CWC member, founder and director of the fabulous Kester Black – tells us about her background and her personal passion for her product.
What led you to starting Kester Black? Kester Black began 4 years ago as a clothing label while I was studying a Bachelor of design, majoring in fashion in the South of New Zealand. When I graduated, my wise mother dearest suggested I broaden my horizons overseas which would bring more opportunities than staying at home and working on my label. I packed my bags and began searching for a job in Melbourne. The experience didn’t quite work out the way I was expecting it to.
After landing myself a job in retail, I thought I’d better get something creative happening to keep my portfolio growing. I began making jewellery and selling it back to New Zealand where that seemed to be quite successful for a few years. After a year in retail, I finally landed my dream job: design assistant for a well known Australian fashion label. I worked in that role for just over a year until I was offered a production manager role for another large company in the industry. The pay they were offering was more than double what I was on, but the catch was that I would have to give up my own little business. I felt like I had worked so hard for the last two and a half years to just give it all up. So I turned down the job, and worked on building my business.
In the mean time, I had decided I was bored of merely working with sterling silver and began researching enamel paints to use on the jewellery I was making. It led me to looking into nail polish, and I really saw a gap in the market. I decided to manufacture and sell my own nail polish line to complement my jewellery. It was a major turning point in my career when, as the jewellery market had become really saturated and my nail polish sales were going through the roof, that I decided to focus solely on the nail polish side of things and lay the jewellery to rest.
How did you go from an idea, to tracking down a manufacturer, to launching your own range of nail polish? It was pretty challenging to begin with. It took me eight months just to do the research, and in the mean time I had to save my pennies to get enough money to invest in the business. It was also a massive risk. I didn’t know how my product would be received, and I’m just lucky people have really supported me and my business. I couldn’t have done it without the constant advice from my friends and family. When I finally found a manufacturer who took me seriously, it was such a relief and things just naturally began flowing. I had my website redesigned, and engaged an amazing photographer (Eve Wilson) whose photographs really brought the presentation of my brand to the next level. I still feel like I have a really long way to go but I am excited about what the next phase is going to bring to my ever growing little business.
How have you managed the carcinogenic-free side of the production process? Did you come across any manufacturers who weren’t flexible enough to develop your ethical product with you? I have actually been working closely along side a chemist who helps me with that side of things. I wanted my product stand out and meet all of my ethical values while still maintaining a durable quality without sacrificing the fun colours. I researched the industry and manufacturing processes in depth and was a little afraid I wouldn’t be able to achieve what I wanted my final product to be. I wasn’t impressed with what some of the bigger corporate companies manage to get away with these days.
It’s just so silly that consumers should even have to think about it, so I did a lot of research on how to make my formula non toxic. Before choosing a manufacturer I asked every one to supply me with their core company values. It was really easy to narrow the field down when I asked to create a non toxic nail polish base. There were definitely some manufacturers who we not willing to change the way in which they do things.
It appears that you surround yourself with like minded business women. Can you explain how the co-written and self-published book “The Hand Book, A guide to nail art” with Chelsea Bagan come about? When I received the first of my six colours of nail polish from the manufacturer, I was interested to see if my product was as high quality as other brands. So I sent out some sample packs to nail artists I found online. Chelsea happened to be one of them. We were in touch over email for a month or so before I decided I would like to create a book on nail art. I asked her on a bit of a 'blind date' to propose my book idea. After the classic ‘I’ll be wearing light blue jeans and I have dark hair’ line we met up and I pitched my idea to her. From that initial first meeting, it only took us 6 weeks to write, shoot and print the book. Chelsea and I have very similar aesthetics and that made working together on such a big project really easy. We have since become great friends and are in touch almost every day.
Originally described as the “Hipster Mani”, how would you describe the new style of nail art seen in your book? After seeing so many awful manicures trending while I was researching, I was excited when I stumbled across Chelsea’s slick work online. I don’t know if I can give you an exact phrase, but the style of nail art that featured in our book seems to be a little more simple, refined and fun. I love the colour combinations we use. I like the cartoon-style nail art much better than the really realistic palm trees and sunsets you see elsewhere. I also believe the nail art in Melbourne is reflective of our creative and artistic culture.
What does a typical day at work involve for you? Well I’m usually awoken at the first sign of light by my little brown Burmese cat George Von Whiskers, nudging me to let him get under the blankets for a morning cuddle. This is the point in which I grab my laptop from beside my bed and set up shop for the morning. I check my emails, do my accounting and try to clear my inbox before it gets swamped again later in the day. I’m always surprised at how many emails I get overnight. After breakfast and a shower I pop into my home office and pack up all the orders I need to send out for the day. Then depending on what time of year it is, I could be mixing up colours for a new collection, researching photo shoot ideas, updating the website and all the while trying not to move too much as to upset the cat sleeping in my lap.
Being a creative I find that my personal and professional life seems to blur. Do you find that Kester Black is a reflection of who you are as a person? Absolutely. Kester Black’s aesthetic is just a combination of all the things I love. My Pinterest and Instagram accounts are a bit of a reflection of that. I am also a very efficient and fast-working person and I think that reflects in my work. I can often be too hasty in evolving my business and I think that shows sometimes. I’m working on improving that!
The people I surround myself with are often other creatives or professionals. I find myself going out for a glass of wine with friends and instead of talking about holiday plans or what has been happening at home, we are devising ideas for an upcoming photo shoot or a list of people who I can approach for collaborations. I’m constantly picking the brains of my ‘not so creative’ friends about investments, accounting software or website coding, all things which I would love to know more about to better my business. In my experience as a business owner, there is no ‘off switch’ at the end of the day, although I do think it’s important to have balance and I have been working on that a lot over the past year.
What was the best piece of business advice given to you over your journey that you can share? I was once told to begin your business the way you intend to run it. I was lucky enough to get it right the third time round. While my business was in it’s clothing and jewellery stages, I was doing everything myself. When I made the switch to nail polish I really made the effort to refine my procedures. For starters, I upgraded to Xero for accounting which has actually made accounting pretty enjoyable. I created a marketing plan and began thinking long term. Kester Black was officially an after school job no more.
What is your personal favourite Kester Black nail colour?
I’d love to quote my mother and give the democratic answer “I love all of my children equally” but I won’t. Lilac is my current fave, the new winter colour just released this week.
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Thank you Anna! Fall in love with Kester Black at www.kesterblack.com and keep up to date with what Anna is up to by following her adventures on Instagram.
Andrea McArthur has a passion for all things visual and works as a Senior Graphic Designer at a branding agency in Dubai. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. You'll find her sharing design related musings via Twitter and Instagram
Interview: Julia Denes of Woodfolk
By Andrea McArthur
For my final interview of 2013, I am delighted to reveal the story behind a creative new accessories label, Woodfolk.
I discovered Woodfolk at the Finders Keepers Market held recently in Sydney, but it was not long before this that Woodfolk was officially launched at Life Instyle Melbourne. Despite its infancy, word of this stylish label is certainly spreading fast.
Julia Denes is the founder and jewellery designer behind Woodfolk. Julia created the label as a break from the fast moving modern world in which we live, with the aim to bring you down to earth. Woodfolk achieves this through simple design, a gentle colour palette and by using only natural materials and fabric.
All Woodfolk products are Australian designed and proudly made by Nepali artisans, throughout local and remote areas of Nepal. The Nepali artisans use their master skills to create beautiful and quality accessories through traditional carving, natural dying, knitting and weaving techniques.
What led you down your current path?
I originally studied a Bachelor of Fine Arts at COFA majoring in Photography, before taking off around the world on a two-year travel adventure that took me to 21 different countries. After spending the last six months of my trip in Central America stringing seeds and shells on banana tree vines, I knew jewellery was my calling.
When I got home I straight away enrolled at Enmore Design Centre, got myself an apprenticeship and began learning to hand-make fine jewellery. Over the years I worked for some of Sydney’s most prominent jewellers both designing and making. In 2009 I started my first business Julia Denes Jewellery that specialised in custom one-off pieces.
Starting Woodfolk felt like a very natural progression. The idea was born after feeling the need to work with more earthy materials and all things natural, combined with my love of travel. I worked on the business for about a year before I launched it at Life Instyle Melbourne a few months ago. It’s got such heart to it, I absolutely love working on it and love the response I’ve been getting from stores and customers.
Who do you admire in Australian accessories design?
I have a lot of admiration for natural, authentic, down to earth businesses like Elk, Nancybird and Ink and Spindle, just to name a few. I find it very inspiring the way they run their businesses. I also love and appreciate all the (much needed) real life, motivational work Clare Bowditch is doing.
What has been your greatest career achievement to-date?
Starting my new business Woodfolk has been my greatest and proudest achievement so far. One of the obstacles I faced in the earlier stages was finding the right people to work with overseas to make the wooden components of my jewellery. I knew I could have gone somewhere like China or India and work with a factory, however that seemed to defeat the purpose of my business. So after lots of research and time spent in Nepal, I found the most lovely, talented family to work with and I’m so happy to be supporting them. I already have my eyes set on a couple of other countries for new product ranges as well.
Describe a typical day at work…
I don’t really have a typical day as I’m running two businesses at the moment and wearing many hats. However, mornings generally start with emails and lots of cups of tea. Days can be filled with stringing and finishing all the wood jewellery; making the ceramic jewellery; getting Woodfolk orders ready and sent; preparing for different design markets and trade shows; liaising with stockists and contacting new stores; creating custom jewellery pieces; developing new ideas to build on the Woodfolk range; all the usual business stuff; and the list goes on. I do like to finish my day with some yoga, pilates or a walk to clear my head – otherwise I start to become a crazy person!
What future plans do you have for Woodfolk?
I have a lot of plans for Woodfolk and see a lot of potential. I’m planning to expand the jewellery line to include more ceramic pieces which have had a great response. A new line of natural style market bags and hand-dyed cotton scarves are already in progress, and I’m considering including some homewares to the range for next year. I’m in no rush though, so I’ll let the nature of this business take its course rather than try and do everything at once.
5 Questions in 5 minutes – Getting Personal:
Studio Sounds, what's playing?
Always something chilled like Ray LaMontagne or Birdy.
What are you currently reading?
Daring Greatly by Brene Brown.
What are you looking forward to?
My upcoming (and much needed) holiday to Vietnam with my husband.
Can you share your go to resource for inspiration?
Blogs like The Design Files, Design Sponge, Books Kinokuniya on George St in Sydney (such a great book store) and I’m a total Pinterest addict (find my page at pinterest.com/woodfolknatural)
What is your local area's best kept secret?
There aren't many secrets left unfortunately in Sydney but I can share some favourite spots: Bondi Beach Farmer’s Markets every Saturday; Breakfast at Bread and Circus in Alexandria; and afternoon/evening walks in Centennial Park.
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If you've fallen in love with Woodfolk like I have, enquiries can be directed via Julia's website, Facebook or follow her on her blog.
Andrea McArthur has a passion for all things visual and works as a freelance Graphic Designer. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. You'll find her sharing design related musings via @andyjane_mc
Interview: Carla Hackett
By Andrea McArthur
Carla Hackett has taken her love of type and turned it into a blossoming boutique lettering and design studio called Foxglove Lettering. Foxglove is based in Melbourne at Little Gold Studios, a shared creative space where Carla hand-crafts lettering for a range of clients in creative industries, including fashion, music, food, branding, retail, hospitality, magazines, books, weddings and conferences. Carla established Foxglove Lettering with the aim of bringing a warm, unique, human element to a world dominated by digital fonts and design.
What led you down your current path?
After studying graphic design at university and six years’ working at some of Sydney’s top agencies, I escaped to Berlin to soak up some international inspiration. It was a fantastic city to be based in as the living expenses are a lot lower than Australia and there is lots going on there creatively. Not to mention being on the doorstep of Europe for travel fun times!
I went along to a two-day hand lettering workshop with Ken Barber from House Industries. From that moment I was completely hooked! It was the perfect mix of illustration and typography that really appealed to me. After the workshop, I began feverishly lettering a bunch of personal work. I had a side project called Deutsch Doodles where I illustrated funny German words and it lead to a commission where I illustrated Berlin Bingo, a hipster guide to Berlin.
Once I’d had my ‘Bowie years,’ I decided to move to lovely Melbourne at the end of 2012. I’d always wanted to live here and it really was the best decision as I’ve found there is a great supportive community of creative business owners here. I decided to focus on my lettering and move into Little Gold Studios and start Foxglove Lettering in March this year. It’s been a journey to really take a step back and hit a reset button before finding what I am really passionate about.
Since then it’s been gaining momentum. I had a little boost of inspiration in March, winning a scholarship to go to Clare Bowditch’s Big Hearted Business Conference. Clare saw my chalkboard in my video and asked me to be the first BHB Inspiration Bomb artist. It was that fantastic exposure and going to the conference that really solidified in my mind that I was on the right path to doing what I love and making a living.
Who do you admire in the industry?
There are some amazing letterers who inspire me greatly. They’ve managed to carve a niche career with this specialty skill. Jessica Hische, Erik Marinovich, Mary Kate McDevitt, Jon Contino and Dana Tanamachi. And locally Gemma O’Brien, Dave Foster and Luke Lucas are producing phenomenal work. My studio buddies at Little Gold inspire me everyday with their energy and passion for their creative businesses. It’s amazing to be around.
Do you think hand-lettering is having a resurgence? Why?
Definitely! I think there is a real yearning for hand-crafted things in this digital age. The nostalgia and ephemeral nature of chalk has its own appeal nowadays. My mentor is a former ‘Ticket Writer’. She made a career out of hand lettering signage for department stores in the 1950s and 1960’s. The sign writing courses have cut most of the hand painting part of the course - it’s all done on the computer. I want to learn this skill so that it can live on!
Can you talk about the difference between hand-lettering and other type-related terms?
By definition, lettering is drawing. Lettering is closer friends with illustration than typography. Let’s also just clear up that calligraphy is writing and typography is a predictable and repeatable system of letters - a typeface.
What has been your most favourite project in recent years?
Earlier this year I got to work with my great friend Irena Macri from Eat Drink Paleo who runs Australia’s most popular paleo recipe site. Irena commissioned me to art direct, letter and illustrate the book's cover, chapter introductions and feature pages. All images were chalked by hand and photographed alongside the ingredients and prepared dishes. The best part was getting to eat all of the healthy delicious food once it was photographed!
What does a typical day at work involve for you?
I ride my bike to my studio in Brunswick where I’ll make my Aeropress coffee. Just this short bike ride and sitting down at my desk is a trigger to switch into creative mode. I try to do most of my creative work first up when I have energy and do some business/admin stuff later in the day. My days could be quite varied, some days I could be out on an on-site chalk job, some days I could be lettering on paper or lettering on my chalkboard, or lettering with paint and a brush! It depends on the project. But as long as I have picked up a drawing instrument everyday, I have practiced my craft so I can get better and learn. There’s also emails and business stuff to stay on top of and posting behind the scenes pictures to Instagram and Facebook!
What future plans do you have for your lettering business?
I really want to keep honing my craft and practicing lettering in all forms. This will mean making time for personal work amongst client work. I feel some great momentum happening, and I’m super excited for more great opportunities for collaborating with interesting brands and Creative Directors on some super fun projects. I’m also learning the ways of combining creativity and business so that I can continue to make a living doing what I love.
I’m working on producing a small range of hand lettered greeting cards as a side-product with my soon to be letterpress printing skills. I eventually would like to run workshops to teach people the process of lettering. I’ve had a few enquiries already!
5 Questions in 5 minutes – Getting Personal:
Studio Sounds, what's playing?
We have rdio set up on a mini iPad in the studio so everyone can control the music from their computer so we always listening to our collection on random rotation. But in particular we’ve been loving the new Snakadaktal - Sleep in the Water. We also love 60’s girl band ditties!
What are you currently reading?
Manage Your Day-to-Day by 99U. It has some fantastic interviews with people like Seth Godin and Stephan Sagmeister on how they manage to do great creative work in these times of many distractions.
What are you looking forward to?
I am super excited to be doing a letterpress workshop with Amy from St Gertrude Design. Amy is going to teach a few designers how to use her 100 year-old press ‘Gordon’ (who moved in Little Gold Studios two months ago) so that eventually we can print our own designs. This is an inaugural workshop and will be open to other designers in the future.
I’m also looking forward to getting back to nature in late December down in Tasmania. We’ll be camping at Freycinet National Park with some hiking, relaxing, sampling the local wine and food, and also get over to the amazing Mona for some art inspiration.
Can you share your go to resource for inspiration?
I have some fantastic lettering books from Louise Fili - ‘Scripts’ and ‘Vintage Type and Graphics’ full of her personal collection of vintage lettering and my 1959 Photo Lettering Catalogue full of original hand-lettered typefaces that Don Draper would have used!
I love seeing behind the scenes work of other letterers and artists on Instagram. On the web, I follow Friends of Type and Type Everything blog amongst others. But there is lettering and type all around us everyday that I find really inspiring.
What is your local areas best kept secret?
It’s probably not so secret with the Brunswick hipsters, but when I found Dejour Jeans I was so excited! $50 jeans in lots of colours with free tailoring? Yes please! I must also mention Los Hermanos for great Mexican food and the cute little Save Yourself designer boutique in Sparta Place that sells my favourite Lime Crime lipsticks.
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After reading all of this type and lettering goodness I'm inspired to pull out the brush pens and chalk! If you would like to contact Carla please see all her details below.
Carla Hackett / Foxglove Lettering Website: carlahackett.com Email: carla@carlahackett.com Instagram: @carlahackett Twitter: @canarycarla Facebook: /carla.hackett.lettering
Andrea McArthur has a passion for all things visual. Type is her true love and goes weak at the knees over beautiful design. Andrea works as a freelance graphic designer in Brisbane by day and lectures in graphic design by night. You will find her sharing design related goodness via @andyjane_mc