Creative business developer.
Throughout my career, I have conducted numerous interviews and have hired and trained over 25 individuals to sell wholesale products in a buyer's office, design using Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, pack & ship and run retail stores.
The ability to interview and identify the ideal candidate is not innate; it requires experience and a clear understanding of your team's specific needs. Recently, I have been learning about Andy Grove's concept of OKRs made famous by John Doerr in his book, "Measure What Matters". For me, building a business was like trying to build a city from the ground up as fast as possible, in the dark, without any tools. When I learned to ask the right questions, why? what? and how?
I became a better leader, I was able to slow down, see a vision, develop the necessary skills and add a team.
There have been times in my career that I have lost the purpose for all of the hard work, so I am on a journey to discover how to make meaningful work that makes life better for people in real need.
My work will always be design centered.
I hope to develop into a better manager of people and projects and a more inventive problem solver.
Skills I have developed so far in order to achieve these goals:
• Adobe Creative Suite
• Microsoft Office
• Google Workspace
• Youtube Creator
• iMovie
• Wix
• Squarespace
• Quickbooks
Measuring success with these results:
• ICRS trade show booth - Best Booth Award (3 consecutive years)
• Growing Gardenfire® to over 5 million in revenue
• Launching my own retail product in Barnes and Noble, Hobby Lobby, Walgreens, and Mardel
• Raising thousands of dollars for non-profit partnerships with give back programs
• Working with LucasArts to illustrated "wrap gifts" for the cast and crew of The Book of Boba Fett
Current objectives:
• Work with a dynamic team to share my energy and absorb their passion for design.
• Grow as a web developer to create UI and UX that is beautiful, and helps the digital world feel more like a place.
• Enter a new phase of my career that hyper-focuses on creativity and design over all of the details that come with entrepreneurship.
Applications I am currently learning:
• Figma
• After Effects
• Character Animator
Books I have read this year:
Between the World and Me - Ta-Nehisi Coates
The Pale King - David Foster Wallace
Basic Economics - Thomas Sowell
Elon Musk - Walter Isaacson
The Passenger - Cormac McCarthy
The Myth of Sisyphus - Albert Camus
Barracoon - Zora Neale Hurston
Measure What Matters - John Doerr
Skills :
Sales - able to make presentations, communicate concepts and ideas.
Software - Adobe Creative Suite - Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign : over 20 years of experience
Product Development - creating apparel & gift lines for key account stores
Illustration - various styles - Vector illustration is my specialty.
Print Design - catalog layouts, magazine advertisements, sales presentations, comic book design, children's book design, book cover art, packaging.
Retail Store Development - store identity, web store design, in store experience graphics, POP, signs.
Art Direction - able to manage teams of photographers and designers to execute projects under pressure.
Branding - corporate identity, branding, logo design, apparel lines, product development.
Social Media - designing for Facebook ads, web ads, target marketing campaigns
Film Separation - textile printing expert
Web Design Experience - working with Inksoft, Square Space, Wix and other simple UX sites.
Retail Store Management - 16 years in management
Sales - able to make presentations and communicate concepts and ideas.
Personality :
I am able to take direction, work with and under people, as well as lead.
Like most designers, I am an idea person who will thrive in a group.
Criticism is not something I am afraid of because I understand how deconstructing an idea with discussion will most of the time lead to great design.
Attending seminars, lectures, design conferences and other learning experiences are essential to my growth and I am always looking to find more of these opportunities.
I have never been the smartest guy in the room. In a team there is often someone with more skills.
However, my ambition and creativity has always allowed me to rise.
People that like me will say that I am quirky, determined, kind and full of ideas.
People that do not like me will say that I am weird, opinionated, and competitive.
I tell the truth. I love to have fun. I love kids (I have 5).
I want to leave the world a better place than it was when I got here.
I believe that design can play an important role in making the world better because it helps people communicate and understand each other.
Awards :
"Best Portfilio" 1999 Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale : This award is given to the top student in the graduating class. I won in part because I designed and executed action figures and packaging of each of my professors. How could they resist?
"Best Print" 2003 : Printwear magazine recognized one of my t-shirt design/prints.
"Best Booth" 2012 CBA IRCS Trade Show : This award was for the design and marketing of a 40'x40' trade show experience.
"Best Booth" 2013 CBA IRCS Trade Show : This award was for the design and marketing of a 40'x40' trade show experience.
"Best Poster" 2015 - Winner of the design contest for the Mad Hatter Ball poster.
Leadership :
Boy Scouts of America - Cub Scout Den Leader 2014 - Present
Keep Eureka Fair – Committee Member. Worked with city council members to support a local ordinance of non-discrimination. My role included public speaking, essay writing, event planning, fundraising, networking, campaign strategy, and design.
Eureka Springs Downtown Network - Board Member. We plan events, and strategize about community building efforts.
Client List / Work History :
INK Enterprises - Designed for FCA, Young Life, Compassion International
Kerusso - Designed for Prayer of Jabez, Max Lucado, Left Behind Series, Archangels Comic
VF Knitwear (Nutmeg) - Licensed apparel design for Star Wars, Austin Powers, Harry Potter, Old Navy, Gap, MLB, NBA, NFL, NCAA.
My Own Brands - Gardenfire, Twice Born, Fish Shticks, Twice Born Design, Simply Blessed and Another Good Day.
Wholesale Accounts - Hobby Lobby, Mardel, Books-A-Million, Walgreens, Walmart, Family Christian Stores, CBD, Berean, LifeWay Christian Stores and thousands of independent stores.
Art Licensing - Halmark (DaySpring), Christian Art Gifts, SlingShot Publishing, Crossroads Designs, Kerusso, Brownlow, Trendz International.
Ministries - The Voice of the Martyrs, Ends of the Earth Cycling, Radical God Talks, Mercy Ministries, hundreds of churches around the country.
