Launched in 2018, Studio Floc is the brainchild of our founder Florence Cassell. Armed with a loyal iMac and a vision to design for good, she started the journey that we’re now on as a growing (and currently fully female) team – supporting great people doing great things in the world through effective and beautiful design.
We’ve taken the time out of our regular routine to learn from her experience and be encouraged by a real life, real time example of a female business owner.
What inspired you to set up your own agency?
Hello everyone – Florence here! Great question – two key things come to mind. Firstly, my experience of starting out as a designer was a tough one. Most of the agencies I worked in created harsh and very isolating environments. I’m grateful because I did learn a lot in those early days but I believed it was possible to have an encouraging and honouring studio culture whilst still achieving excellence. This inspired me to start Studio Floc. My aim is to create a place where my team and I work hard and efficiently whilst also encouraging and supporting one another.
And then secondly, I’m passionate about playing my part in making the world a better place and love to use design as a tool to do that. Last year we had the privilege of rebranding Love Your Neighbour, an incredible charity who are committed to helping people overcome pressing social challenges by tackling the root causes of poverty through crisis support, debt advice, employment training and community care. We’ve been able to give them a visual language to communicate their message effectively in order to impact more lives. So good. I appreciate that we’re only one agency empowering a select handful of clients but imagine the world we’d live in if everyone played their part.
What has been your biggest challenge as a female founder?
When I was about to start Studio Floc back in 2018, only 16% of founders in the UK were female. I was surrounded by and learned from men. Don’t get me wrong, I learned a lot from those guys and many of which I still turn to for advice and are supportive in all I do. The presence of men has never been the issue, it has been the lack of women to encourage, trail-blaze and to be inspired by that has made the journey more difficult.
What has been your biggest learning point as a female founder?
I continue to lead the business that I feel called to run even though historically (and sometimes discouragingly) the odds aren’t stacked in my favour. Oh and the other thing is that Imposter Syndrome is a bitch. It has taken me a while but I’m still improving my ability to differentiate the helpful, guiding voice in my head from the unhelpful, self-doubting one. If you’ve got the tools there in front of you but need that extra push of confidence, just be bold and go for it.
I would highly recommend checking out Craig Groeschel’s book ‘Winning the war in your mind’ if this is something you struggle with.
Do you have any advice for women starting out in business?
Three key things – firstly, surround yourself with a support network of friends/mentors who will encourage you on the journey. Secondly, never stop learning. And thirdly, in my experience, more often than not, people respond to expertise delivered with confidence, not gender.
Driven by purpose, we use creativity to enable the makers, equip the innovators and empower the world-changers. We specialise in branding, print and digital design.
Have questions for our founder? Looking for help with branding, print or digital design work? Let’s chat! Get in touch at [email protected]
We’re delighted to share that Unfold have taken on organising the Smart Cookies meetup group, started by the wonderful Nic & Nat Alpi, previously of Cookies HQ.
Smart Cookies is a quarterly meetup group of over 1,000 entrepreneurs, involved in the Bristol creative and digital industries, passionate about design, development and marketing.
We want to continue the events in the same spirit and ethos as our predecessors, promoting collaboration between disciplines so we can devise better solutions for all aspects of the creative process.
Each meetup will feature either individual speakers or an expert panel, where discussion will centre around a set theme related to building and growing digital ventures.
Whether you’re a tech professional, an entrepreneur, freelancer or student, there will be something for you. It’s a great opportunity to meet new people, make connections and join a community of smart cookies.
Come along and be inspired or – if you’d like to share your own experiences – why not contact us about becoming a speaker?
Boxworks is a unique workspace in the heart of Bristol’s Temple Quarter. Twenty shipping containers have been re-imagined into stylish, affordable private studios perfect for small teams. The studios, or ‘Boxes’, are super-insulated, come with superfast fibre and 24/7 access. Tenants get access to facilities at Engine Shed too, including lounge access, a communal kitchen, showers and meeting rooms
To celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit of Bristol’s creative community, Forward Space has teamed up with Bristol Creative Industries (BCI) and Circus Journal to launch Startup at Boxworks, a competition to win three months tenancy at Boxworks.
Aimed squarely at new businesses, sole traders and freelancers, the competition will provide much-needed support for the early stages of a business by giving the fledgling enterprise the space to grow and explore ideas, without the pressure of workspace costs.
The competition is open to all businesses with a turnover of £150,000 or less. To apply, entrants simply need to outline why office space would help take their business to the next level by submitting either a written statement, a presentation or a short video.
Full entry criteria is here. Deadline for submissions is midnight on Friday 24th February 2023.
Gavin Eddy, CEO of Forward Space, said
“I’ve loved seeing the countless businesses we’ve worked with over the years grow and find success after using one of our spaces. Helping to nurture the next generation of entrepreneurial talent in the South West is something I’m very passionate about too, so I can’t wait to see what interesting proposals we see over the coming weeks.”
Alli Nicholas, membership manager, Bristol Creative Industries, said:
“Bristol Creative Industries is thrilled to be partnering with Forward Space on this initiative. A three month Boxworks residency is such a brilliant opportunity for one of our members, particularly fledgling startups who may currently be working entirely remotely. Finding the right office space is key to the success of any business. Right next door to Engine Shed, Boxworks is the perfect place to get immersed in Bristol’s thriving ‘createch’ community; making new connections and exploring opportunities for growth.”
Simon Tapscott, co-founder and publisher, Circus Journal said:
“Circus is all about celebrating creativity and community in the south-west, and with a third of our readers running their own businesses discovering workspaces that inspire people to come together and collaborate is an important and recurring theme
“We are delighted to be supporting this fantastic initiative to enable the next generation of creatives in Bristol.”
Enter the competition by 24 February here.
I had root canal treatment last week. The highlight was the end.
Not for the reason you think (modern dentistry means the only discomfort is the bill).
It was because as I left and went downstairs to face the credit card machine the dentist let out a cheer.
But not because they wanted to see the back of me (I was a patient patient).
It was because I have “strange anatomy”. There are four roots in this troublesome tooth and one had embedded itself at a jaunty angle (that’s another thing – there are normally three roots per tooth, but this one is greedy).
At the end my dentist admitted it had been difficult. Her calm professionalism meant I was unaware. This cheer let me know that the jaunty root was a bigger challenge than I realised.
It reminded me how rewarding it is when you overcome a challenge.
For the dentist, it was my troublesome roots. For me, it’s when a client wants some website functionality I haven’t done before.
I rarely say “no” because with research and having a play, I may discover how to do it. If I can’t at least I’ve tried and I’ll learn something on the way.
If I can, I feel a sense of achievement and add it to my list of things I can do.
Most problems can be solved with patience, perseverance and experience.
And sleeping on it.
New challenges are what keeps work interesting. They advance our skills and knowledge. They stop us stagnating. It means we are progressing and giving our customers and clients an even better service than before.
That’s what makes work rewarding.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
2022 was a pretty transformative year for Keep Art It.
Special thanks to:
Director Douglas Karson highlights:
We’re thrilled to bits about what’s coming next!
Earlier this year we pledged to become a climate conscious web design agency by supporting global projects to offset carbon emissions and plant trees, helping us to become climate positive and support the global need for tree planting through our work providing web design in Bristol.
Since signing up to Ecologi in April 2022 we have so far planted 335 trees, supported 14 global projects and offset 5.7 tonnes of carbon, that’s not bad for 7 months of work, but we know we can do more.
Each month we plant a minimum of 20 trees as our commitment, then for each client that hosts their website with us we plant a further number of trees depending on their hosting plan, the bigger the plan the more server resources are used and the more carbon offsetting is required, just viewing a web page can generate up to 5g of CO2.
We are genuinely concerned about our planet and the global need to plant more trees to reduce humans global CO2 emissions and as a company we want to help in any way we can. Our team are passionate about the world we live in and helping to protect the planet.
Read the full article on our website at https://www.eckhomedia.co.uk/we-are-a-climate-conscious-web-design-agency/
The tech industry is fascinating from a brand perspective. Its growth has been so fast, disruptive and organic, with so many quickly expanding start-ups, that it has barely had time to pause and draw breath, let alone ponder what role brand might have to play in its future. When your numbers are good, something like brand scarcely seems to matter. Most companies have thrived despite, rather than because of theirs. But the hour of reckoning may be near.
In all industries there comes a point when it isn’t enough to have a great product or service to build a successful business. Knowledge spreads and grows. What once was groundbreaking rapidly becomes standard, imitable, improvable… the marketplace crowds and alternatives proliferate. Your ability to communicate your difference and your real value becomes ever more important as competition intensifies. Which is what makes the current situation in tech, digital and data analytics so interesting. With a plethora of similar-looking brands that use familiar language, the sector has evolved into a homogeneous playing field. The overwhelming sense is that everyone looks and sounds extraordinarily similar. That, for the wise, presents a far bigger opportunity than a few more lines of groundbreaking code.
It’s easy to see how things have come to be the way they are. All that mattered at the outset was the innovation. Companies started small and agile. Many really struggled to keep pace with their own success. Brand was often lumped in with digital marketing, handed to less senior people to take care of, and frequently seen as superficial – “just a logo” – and therefore low priority. The great thing about digital marketing from a digital company’s point of view? It’s easy to measure. Brand, which is bigger in every way, less so. All this is understandable: companies had people to hire, products to develop and customers to deal with. Even many who understand the importance of brand have simply put it off.
But now the situation has evolved. Many of those companies that started with two or three people now number twenty or thirty or substantially more. Now internal purpose, morale, discipline, decision-making and behaviour weighs heavier: bigger overheads, bigger clients, bigger responsibilities… each new step carries greater implications. How do you keep this ever-growing number of people together as a meaningful entity? Who exactly are you, as an organisation? What do you actually stand for?
The questions keep coming. How will you thrive consistently in the tech big battleground that is the fight for talent, when demand outstrips supply? What’s going to make high quality people choose you, instead of a close rival, for their next job, so you can maintain the high standards of the work you do as it scales up? Your good name and future business rests on it. And how, when you know that your product is better than your lookalike rivals out there, are you going to convince potential customers of that? How will they know who to believe? What’s going to get you the market share your innovation undoubtedly deserves?
Decisions going your way is the answer to these questions – and all of the great myriad of micro-influences that lead to that. But it’s easier said than done. The science of decision-making is fairly well documented. We’re not such rational beings as we’d like to believe, with up to 90 percent of the choices we make based on emotion… and later post-rationalised. This is just as applicable to tech as it is to buying chocolate in the supermarket or choosing a house. Instinctive decisions are made before we even know it ourselves. And this is where a brand – when it’s done well – comes into its own.
A brand isn’t simply a logo, a strapline, colours, imagery, fonts – it’s the sum of how all these are orchestrated, plus the behaviours and feelings that this leads to. It’s the whole experience of your organisation at every moment it has contact with someone. It’s the sum of every gesture and action by every employee as well as every facet of every piece of communication. A smart brand is alive to possibilities not just online or through marketing but anywhere there is engagement or the opportunity to bring its big core idea to life. Why can’t you make someone smile when they least expect it, in – say – the company car park for example? A brand is how you make your customers (and your own people) feel, which influences their behaviour towards you. And that’s why it’s a key strategic tool. The right thinking now can shape big, big decisions later. This is not a slap of paint.
To return to the tech sector in particular. It tends to be the case that tech companies focus intensely on what they have developed. It’s what they know, it’s where they feel comfortable. But what do they – or you – really know of the person who says yes or no to you, the key decision-maker with the final word? Or of what goes into that decision? Are you sure the technology itself is even within the grasp of this individual? Does it even need to be? Perhaps what matters for them is simplicity, ease of use, an instant sense of reliability and effectiveness: impact. Often, it’s not until much further down the line that verification of the tech offer is sought – usually by someone else, long after the important decision has been made. It’s no coincidence that so many tech businesses only thrive when they become human, literally, in the form of a meeting or presentation. If that’s the only time your “brand” is alive – then you don’t have a brand at all.
The fact is that many businesses in the tech sector focus their communications around dry, technical language set against a visual backdrop of technology cliches or familiar-looking process diagrams. Whilst it might be a necessity to articulate the nitty gritty of a technology, platform or service somewhere, this is often given priority at the expense of the wider, more human and beneficial story. Complexity stymies simplicity. Many businesses are missing the opportunity to connect their brand with customers in a much more powerful way.
So what can (great) branding do for you:
— Revolutionise credibility
— Influence the big decisions people are making about your company
— Improve your talent acquisition
— Support your business strategy
— Radically alter morale and engagement internally
— Increase business leads and new business / revenue
— Inform strategic decisions
— Bring stability and reassurance through demanding times
— Drive IPO or sales valuations higher
— Change the future.
Digital Gaggle, the best inbound conference for marketers in the South West, returns on Thursday 13th October to the Watershed in Bristol with tickets now on sale.
Turn your digital marketing strategy into a roaring success with inspiration from a bumper line-up of industry experts speaking on topics like SEO, social media, CRO, Analytics, UX, Strategy, Creative and more:
Visual Search – Tools and Tactics | Crystal Carter, Head of SEO Communications at Wix
The Mad Science of Data-Driven Creativity | Richard Cook, Social Media Manager at Monzo
Get Paid To Do Nothing with Marketing Automation | Andy Thornton, Senior HubSpot Executive at Noisy Little Monkey
Google Analytics 4 | Jill Quicks, Analytics Consultant and Trainer at The Colouring In Department
How Not To Be A Git. Data Ethics In Digital Marketing | Rowenna Fielding, Professional Data Protection Nerd at Miss IG Geekd
If you’re an in-house marketer looking to meet new people in the industry, snag best practice advice, and get the creative juices flowing ahead of your next marketing campaign, Digital Gaggle is the event for you.
Here’s what previous Gaggle attendees had to say about the day.
“Great energy. Lovely welcoming crowd of like minded souls. Interesting speakers”
“Different kind of vibe, expert speakers, talks not too long, great randomised networking”
“Genuinely interesting and interactive talks full of the latest trends and ideas to take home”
A limited number of tickets are on sale with 30% off until Friday 30th September.
🔜 Bag your place before tickets sell out.
Yuup is looking for community heroes and local champions to take on a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
Know someone that is a local champion? An unsung hero that gives their spare time to supporting their community and making Bristol a better place for everyone to live?
Yuup is on the hunt for local Bristol community heroes and you can nominate them to win the experience of a lifetime in the Yuup hot air balloon ride giveaway.
Community is at the heart of Yuup and the company is known for enabling positive social impact. Every day the business works closely with people, charities and small businesses that pour their hearts into making a positive local impact. It’s clear that there are a number of unsung heroes that Bristol wouldn’t be the same without.
The Bristol-born local marketplace is giving away a hot air balloon flight over Bristol to one lucky person that deserves some recognition for their hard work and dedication to bringing positive social impact to their local area.
In appreciation of people making a difference in their community, Yuup is inviting you to nominate someone via the Yuup Instagram page @say.yuup.
Head to the balloon flight giveaway post pinned to the top of the page and follow the instructions to nominate your special person.
They might be a whizz at volunteering or brilliant at fundraising, they could spend their weekends clearing rubbish or caring for animals, they might have started a community group, club, or night out that helps people connect.
The winner will be picked at random from entries with the most inspiring individuals.
Nominations are open until 6pm on 25th August. Full T&Cs can be found on the Instagram post.
Founded in 1990, The Square is Bristol’s Private Members Club for the creative industries, located on Berkeley Square. Members of The Square are part of a unique community of like-minded creative professionals. The Square provides an arena of original thought and discussion, and members enjoy a range of personal and professional benefits.
Along with a vibrant events programme and an award-winning restaurant, The Square provides a dynamic social environment and a flexible workspace. Equipped with a boutique lounge, the Square Kitchen restaurant, the Lower Deck Cocktail Bar and hidden city-centre Terrace, The Square is ideal for working, socialising, holding events and meeting new people.
The Square Club connects creatives across the world, and has reciprocal arrangements with clubs in the following locations:
BCI members can apply for discounted membership at a rate of £60 per quarter. This not only gives members access to The Square Club, but to all of the reciprocal venues around the world.
For an additional fee, membership can be upgraded to include access to Square Works, The Square’s high-end, part and full time serviced offices and co-working space.
Square Member Benefits include:
To apply for discounted membership, please email [email protected].
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