Well, I grew up pretty country bumpkin-ish in Conneaut Lake PA, about 90 minutes north of Pittsburgh. I always knew I’d be an artist when I grew up (all creatives were lumped together as “artists” in the 80’s, before the sheik and delightfully ambiguous term “Graphic Designer” was coined). I spent tons of geeky hours drawing stuff and making crafty type creations as a kid. My parents were no doubt apprehensive when I announced my plans for art school since they though all artists stood starving on street corners selling their wares. I ended up neither vagabond nor starving so they have lightened up over the years! I had some great influences in High School and Art school which cemented my love for the craft.

Absolutely, my entire life has been surrounded by some form of design or at least a state of artistic dependency. After graduation, I jumped right into an in house design job and eventually worked my way into the big agency grind. It’s all true…the shelf life of any designer in a big agency environment is short lived, so after 7 years of midnight press checks and mind boggling work loads, I started making my escape plans. Having had constantly pushed for the latest software and kept up with technology through journals, how-to’s and continuing education, I like to think I had a hand in keeping the agency on the cutting edge, all while really expanding my capabilities. I quit agency life cold turkey and set up a self proprietary freelance business on the top floor of a three story house in the Northside.

The transition into web was quite undetectable. I was interested in the www ever since Al Gore invented it! I took classes in html early on and was confident in my Dreamweaver skills by the time I started my business. My first Flash site was born of necessity since it was my new freelancing site. I created the site that we have now in about 10 days with little more than a Flash for Dummies book and many pots of coffee. Once the freelance business started getting too big for me to handle the web work coming in, I hired my first subcontractor…who is still with me today. In addition to currently having 2 full time web guys, we team with some great partners who provide high-end site optimization and programming that is too extensive to be done in house. I’m involved mostly with the design end of the web these days but I do stick my nose in a project or two on occasion to keep up with the software.

Just an opportunistic move at the time. I was looking to move my freelance business into some studio space in an attempt to separate work from personal life. I was at a point where I was working 8am-11pm with the help of three subcontractors, so I decided it was time to go big or go ….well I was home, so I wanted to go to work. The space had just opened up beside a hair salon where a good friend of mine worked. It’s an awesome space and the rent is low, so we get the best of both worlds here. We’ve got a kitschy old west theme going on here so it’s kind of fun to step into a work space that’s filled with old spaghetti western movie posters, rustic wood furniture and lots of odds and ends like jail keys, spittoons and a big set of steer horns over a doorway. Corny, yes, boring, not a chance!

Well, I came to Pittsburgh to attend the Art Institute, I stayed because I loved it. It’s the perfect size. Small enough to be in the suburbs in minutes but large enough to still have great cultural influences and artist venues that you would find in bigger cities like NY or Chicago. The cost of living here is a plus as well. We do work for clients all over the country so clients in California or DC love our prices because the firms there can be twice as much due to the cost of living there.

Not at all. I thought I would freelance as long as I could and then probably end up looking for another agency job. I took every freelance job that came my way because I always kept thinking “if I say no, I’ll end up hungry and selling paintings on the street corner”. I think every “artist” goes through a period of questioning “am I good enough”, causing many freelancers start out undercharging, second guessing estimates and taking on every painful project that comes along. So, it’s definitely a rite of passage when you reach that level of design nirvana where no longer feel you need to explain your prices and you know you deserve the success.

My business plan was so “right brain” when I started…which is actually kind of good. If I had known all the left brain hurdles to clear in operating a successful design business, I probably would not have attempted it. Ignorance is bliss until you buy your first copy of QuickBooks! I started with little more than exceptional design skills, a good work ethic and “user-friendly” communication skills.

I found early on that the biggest complaints about freelancers were lack of dependability and way too much graphic-speak which made people wonder what they paid for. After hearing enough new clients profess their unhappiness with the overpriced website that their “cousin’s-step sister’s-uncle-who-took-an-html-class-at-community-college” did, it fortified my desire to stay dependable, affordable and demystify the design process. I still implement that style today, so that part has not changed. Consequently, it’s been the leading factor in getting repeat business or referrals from the majority of our clients. Many of the clients who started with me when I was freelancing are still with me today.

After about 2-1/2 years of a freelancing blizzard, I realized that the workload was snowballing too fast so I started subbing out work. After 5 years, I finally accepted that I was definitely doing something right and strapped on some skis.

Right now we are at “maximum capacity” in our McKees Rocks space. So on a logistic level, I see us in bigger office space. From a staff & capabilities standpoint, we’ve gone from 2 to 6 staff members in the two+ years we’ve been here. I definitely see that growth trend continuing especially with some recent opportunities presented to us. We just entered a partnership arrangement with a company called eyeflow that specializes in website optimization. We will be taking over the design portion of their services. The union is projected to double our current workload.

In addition to that, our “referral ripple” has moved our client base from the east coast all the way to clients in California. We also picked up one in Canada last month so I see our national/international client demographic getting larger as well. I have no doubt that as long as we continue doing that thing we do, growth on all levels is inevitable.

Ideally, I’d love to just freeze frame everything right now and just enjoy it. It’s been such a whirlwind from 1999 to the present that I have barely had time to pause and appreciate it. I’d have to liken it to raising a child in that the time goes so fast. One minute you have an adorable baby leaning to walk and the next you have a complex teenager with a mind of its own. I do have an amazing team that has been totally supportive in keeping the growing pains to a minimum. There are really no weak links in this team and it only servers to strengthen our capabilities armor. We have a great group dynamic and a really positive work vibe going on right now, so all is well in our little corner of the design world. I’m sure we’ll do our best to baton down the hatches for the upcoming work storm!

Always the national ones! But, I would have to say that the PRINT magazine inclusion and having been showcased in PRINT’S Best Business Cards and Letterheads was a big one for me personally since my focus has always been print design. Any national judging staff that pulls a piece of your artwork out of tens of thousands that were entered tends to solidify your desire to be a part of this industry. As for our best team effort, having been nominated for an ADDY in web design validated our web strength. The awards are always nice but the kudos and effervescent gratitude of a really pleased client wins out every time.

I have the usual suspects to thank for inspiring me to pursue this career; my parents, teachers, friends, etc. But creative inspiration for me just comes from life. I know it sounds very cliché but I really do get my inspiration from movies, TV, books, people, magazines, etc. I think that no matter how old I get I will always want to know the name of the latest “hot” band, the buzz on the next Oscar winning movie, peruse a new “Best Of” design book, read an article on the newest technology and ask my niece (she’s currently 4) her opinion world issues.

I’m very blessed to be one of the few people (statistically speaking) who loves what they do for a living and I hope I can keep doing it as long as possible. I appreciate your interest in my creative ramblings.

My contribution to the world is my ability to draw. I will draw as much as I can for as many people as I can for as long as I can. - Keith Haring