If someone had just said to me on day one of my degree course, make sure everything lines up, lock everything to a baseline, and treat Josef Müller Brockmann’s ‘Grid Systems in Graphic Design’ like a bible, I might have saved myself some valuable time and spent an extra few years in the real world. Needless to say that didn't happen, and following a rather time consuming three years and armed with nothing more than a couple of letters after my name, I finally made my way into the industry in 1996.
London-based B2B magazine and digital publishing group Centaur Media had been my home for 18 years where I steadily rose through the ranks. In 2009 I became art director for the group's marketing and creative titles, then creative director for live events.
And now? Well, I moved back to my native North in 2014 for a bit of fresh air and to go it alone. I now work as a freelance art director helping a variety of fabulous clients with their branding, marketing, print and digital projects.
I'm one of those annoyingly lucky people who don't see their job as work, but just doing something they love every day.