First Look at First Light

Earlier this summer we were delighted to win an exciting design and print project for leading young people's film agency, First Light. Following a competitive pitch process we set about designing a striking Annual Review that would help the company to showcase its projects to stakeholders, funders, and potential sponsors.

Taking inspiration from a selection of short films made by young people involved with First Light projects, we designed and illustrated the booklet to reflect the organisation's vision, in turn, representing the creativity of the young people involved.

Three's the Magic Number

Well, it’s been three busy and exciting years since I joined Mark to launch Empty Creative as a limited company.

Mark had been working under the Empty Creative banner for two years as a freelancer and when the opportunity arose for me to join him to push the business forward we thought “why not”.

So, with a couple of clients to take us forward and an office the size of a large cupboard we set about building a business where we would offer excellent design and marketing and most importantly great client service.

The main thing we strive for is to deliver what we promise to our clients and on celebrating our third birthday I’m proud that we’ve retained our original clients and built a strong new client base by sticking to this rule.

Since September 2007 we’ve steadily grown the business, made the move to bigger premises and employed a great team and although it hasn’t always been easy, the rewards far outweigh any negatives and we’re looking forward to celebrating many more birthdays to come.

Jo

Empty Creative Celebrates Brilliantly Birmingham Win!

After a highly competitive pitch process the team here at Empty Creative are thrilled to have won the design and marketing for this year’s Brilliantly Birmingham. The contemporary jewellery festival, now in its eleventh year, has gained international renown over the past decade, attracting designer makers from across the globe.

Having tendered and won this project for the past four years we are delighted that our fresh, creative approach was exactly what the festival team were looking for and can’t wait to get started on this year’s campaign.

Creative Director Mark Townsend said:

“2010 marks the 11th Brilliantly Birmingham festival and we are really excited that our concepts have been so well received at this initial stage. We feel honoured to be working on the the festival for the fifth year in a row and are really looking forward to pushing it forward into a new decade with some fantastic creative design and marketing.”

We are also delighted to be working alongside another Jewellery Quarter based agency, Rewired PR who will be handling the promotion for the festival.

Brilliantly Birmingham will be taking place at venues across Birmingham, including the newly refurbished MAC in Cannon Hill Park, between 27th November 2010 and 9th January 2011. We’ll be updating you through the various stages of the project but in the meantime visit www.brilliantlybirmingham.com for all festival news.

Art, City Style.

Although this has been around for quite a while now, I still get a little pang of joy every time I walk past the gorgeous artwork by Lucy McLaughlan currently spread across Birmingham’s Central Library. Whilst there are many that would disagree with me, I think it’s fair to say that the library is pretty unpopular with Birmingham folk. Situated next to the beautiful architecture of the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and the grand council houses, the grubby concrete block known as Central Library does nothing to brighten Birmingham’s image to visitors to or residents of the city.

However, a recent project by EC-Arts entitled ‘Beautify the City’ saw the commission of a large scale mural by local artist Lucy McLauchlan that did exactly as its title suggested, and brightened up the city. The black and white artwork, featuring birds perching on the sides of the 1970s building has been seen by thousands since it was erected this summer.

Whilst I am unaware of the tenure of this artwork, I’m currently taking great pleasure in seeing Birmingham giving its talented artists a platform on which to showcase their work. And if it means that a few of our least attractive city centre buildings get a much needed face-lift along the way then surely its a win win situation for everyone.

So, Birmingham. More of this, please. Lots more.

Empty Office

Time has flown since we moved into our lovely new office in April and whilst there’s the odd box still be to sorted (mentioning no names Mr Creative Director) and artwork to get on the walls, we’ve settled in and love our new space.

We've put a few pics of our new pad here, so if you’re ever in the area and fancy a coffee just give us a call.

Celebrating a Year (and a bit) at Empty Creative

It’s been a year since I first walked through the doors at Empty Creative and what a journey it has been. Over the past twelve (well, fourteen) months, I’ve worked on fantastic projects including Brilliantly Birmingham, Sex and the City Birmingham and RTS Midlands Awards, I’ve welcomed promotions from Marketing Administrator through to Senior Account Handler and I’ve moved with the company into our gorgeous new office in the red brick Victoria Works. I’m not going to lie, it hasn’t always been easy but the challenges I’ve faced and the lessons I’ve learned in the past year or so have all played a huge part in the person I am becoming.

So, rather than boring you with lists of things I’ve enjoyed and and anecdotes of office fun, here are just some of the most important things that I’ve learnt and I am continuing to learn.

1. Don't be afraid to ask for help.

You will always encounter new challenges so don’t expect to know the right answers straight away. The business world is complex, it takes time, perseverance and guts to succeed but above all, it take experience. It can be daunting starting out in the world of work, with much of your experience yet to come so utilise the experience of others. Ask friends, colleagues, managers and mentors for help and advice and you’ll soon find that things become a little clearer.

2. Be confident in your own ability.

I think it’s fair to say that we all forget our successes far too easily, concentrating only on our mistakes, however minor they might be. And this rings all too true for myself. I’ve always been driven to get things right, and do things better - but with this comes a distinct lack of credit for the good work that I do do. Remember, that with confidence comes ability, clear thinking and drive. Sometimes, failure is inevitable but don’t let it deter you. Use it to fuel your future success.

3. Have some gumption.

It’s easy to get pulled into the limitations and restraints put on a job for whatever reason but don’t ever forget to aspire, to think big. My job is to achieve the best for my clients and a little gumption, some spirited enthusiasm and perhaps even some gentle persuasion will always ensure a result bigger and better than the client could ever have expected.

4. Don't be afraid to show your personality.

People like to work with people so be prepared to interact. Whether at networking events, via social media or when meeting existing or potential clients, find a common ground, build a rapour and engage.

5. Give yourself time.

Perspective is a very useful commodity. Whether you are writing copy, proposing a new project or idea or even feeling a little out of your depth. Take a step back, give yourself some breathing space and come back to the task in hand from a fresh perspective. You’ll find your thinking is a lot clearer, your work of a higher standard and your enjoyment much greater.

New Year New Start... sort of

Ok, so my New Years resolution to write regular posts for the blog may have got off to a slow start (a six month slow start), but then so has my attempt to cut down on chocolate, caffine and celebrity gossip. You can’t win them all... or any sometimes.

2009 was a good year for Empty despite the dreaded cc* phrase being banded about at every opportunity to fill any business owner with dread that their company would collapse (like the banks but without the bonuses).

We managed to win new clients and projects on a monthly basis and achieved our aim to employee new staff to support with client work and accounts (thank you Claire and Lynn).

So, we’re already half way through 2010 and it’s been a busy six months for Empty (so busy I haven’t had time to write this post before now...ahem).

We’ve taken on our new designer David, who will be supporting us on all things creative as well as helping us to push the digital side of the business. Welcome to the team David! We’ve continued to win new work via retainer clients and new clients (which is always nice) and we’ve moved into our lovely new (and much bigger) office in Frederick Street, Hockley. Unlike our last office we now have running hot water and windows that open more than an inch - it’s these things that make a working day just that little bit better believe me!

So with more space to think and grow as a company (as well as hot water and fresh air), a great team and some exciting projects on the horizon we’re looking forward to the next six months being our most successful to date.

*cc = credit crunch (if you couldn't break the code)