2016 – what a year it’s been!
It has been a HUGE year for us. After over 13 years of being part of a corporate franchise business, 2016 was to be the year that we moved onto pastures new and became something that we can consider to be much more unique, personal and special.
I have an impeccable talent for underestimating workload (just ask the team!) and going through a complete rebrand was certainly no exception! The work involved in branding design alone was something that I thought would have been ‘boxed off’ within a couple of weeks, however I must have become a real pain in the backside when we hit out tenth logo revision…
When it came to the refit, the logo design became negligible in comparison! We were faced with so many choices and decisions every single day, flooring, paint colours, vinyls, lighting, audio/visuals, furniture sourcing… the list didn’t seem to go down, in fact it grew as so many options became available that had consequences to other aspects. No sooner had a wall gone up, that it had been knocked down again for blocking out too much light (the builder loved me) and despite the second coat of paint drying on the walls/doors, I was changing it again as it just didn’t ‘feel’ right to me despite everyone else loving it. Control freak? Perfectionist? Well, maybe just a bit…
I am so glad we sourced Nicki Kelly in helping us with all of the interior design. I wanted us to look different to any other photography studio, a break away from the ordinary and wanted to take our clients along a journey, sharing our love of photography. Nicki passionately embraced our concept as creating the unusual is right up her street. There was a ban on ‘normal’, every single white wall must be painted or we’d be sure to burn in hell.
The work involved behind our website, product ranges, display images, recruitment, shop fit design and software programming has accelerated my hair loss more so than usual. Working 12 hour days in the studio, getting home and then continuing work on the pc until the early hours has been the norm for a several months. Mix this in with having one year old twin boys at home who have the phenomenal skill of screaming the house down just as your head hits the pillow!
So was it worth it? Abso-bloody-lutely J
The difference has been nothing short of remarkable. The feedback from our clients alone made all the hard work worthwhile. From personally meeting 99% of our clients over the past few months, I know that we are delivering a remarkable service and pricing structure that now works for the vast majority. I’m a firm believer in the saying ‘you get what you pay for’ and had no intention of moving away from producing a quality service, product and experience. I believe we have incorporated fair value without compromising and it feels good 🙂
I know that we will be seeing so many of the faces again in the future as they choose us as their family grow and change over the next few years.
The positive feedback also radiates from the team who haven’t looked back since the re-brand. We’ve created a brand with the right values. Our focus is with the customer in mind rather than the ‘shareholders’ which means we can honestly feel proud of our business and what we produce.
Thank you to all of our fantastic clients that have visited us this year, it really has been a blast and we couldn’t have done it without you.
We have lots of exciting plans for 2017 so we’d love it if you would ‘stay connected’ to us. If you don’t already, follow us on Facebook here
Wishing you and your families a safe, happy and prosperous New Year
Best Wishes
John
