Hello and Merry Christmas.

It’s exactly three years to the day since Thoughtful was born.

We weren’t too impressed with last year’s Christmas speech. We rushed it as we were working on other projects until late on Christmas Eve – our apologies.

This year we started it early. We’re writing these first few lines on Boxing Day 2008 to be precise so hopefully it will make for a much more interesting read.

We’ve always wanted our Christmas Speech to be an honest account of our year in business. We think there’s value in telling you what mistakes we’ve made and how we can improve as a business with the intention it might help other people in the same situation as ourselves. We take the lead from companies like howies and innocent who draw back the curtain on their business to show everyone how they work – both good and bad.

So if you’re sitting comfortably, we’ll begin…

Thoughtful vs The Recession

One subject we held back on talking about last year was the £80,000 business loan which we took out in January 2007 in order to get Thoughtful started. We did so for a number of reasons, the main reason being we were still paying it off we and didn’t want to ruffle any feathers over at HSBC Towers because these guys had the power to shut us down – which we’re sure they would have done had we not been prepared for the year ahead.

So our main goal for 2009 was simple: pay off the loan. Forget a shiny new website, forget entering design awards, just nail the loan because after two years of working seven days a week, we hadn’t really passed the start line in business.

James likens it to the Great North Run – as he placed himself in the middle pack for the race, he started so far back it took him half an hour of running and dodging people just to reach the starting line. By the time he started the race he was knackered and fairly downbeat, which to be honest is how we all felt at the start of 2009.

As a business our problem is two fold:

1. We don’t charge enough for the work we do.
2. The time we devote to a project out-weighs the budget.

So in our first two years we were spending a lot of time on projects which didn’t necessarily have the budget to cover that time, and in some case there was no budget at all. This isn’t a revelation to us, we’re not the kind of studio that wants to churn work out in order to feed the machine or let a project fall short of what it could be simply because the client hasn’t got the budget to cover the extra hours needed to turn something good into something great. As far as Thoughtful are concerned, if the client is as passionate about the work as we are then money doesn’t enter into it. And hopefully that’ll be the way we will continue to work.

Of course, that way of working brings with it its own set of problems as the lion’s share of any money we were generating was going straight to the bank to cover the repayment on the loan, the hefty interest on the loan AND an interest payment to the DTI for securing the loan (in our first two years we paid over £25,000 in interest alone). But we always met the repayments, paid suppliers on time then paid ourselves a sort of wage with whatever was left.

When the CREDIT CRUNCH hit things changed. The moment it seemed the worlds financial system was in meltdown we knew the bank would come KNOCKING ON THE DOOR FOR THE REST OF THEIR MONEY and sure enough they did.

But like true boy scouts we’re nothing if not prepared and sensing the coming storm we agreed amongst ourselves to channel all the money from several large pieces of business straight into paying off loan. It was tough, but on Thursday 13 August 2009 we were delighted to say that through a combination of hard work, talent but more importantly some very Thoughtful clients we paid back every penny (plus interest) in just over two and a half years – a huge difference from the 10 year repayment plan we had originally agreed.

We know it’s easy to bemoan the evil banks but we recognise it was a bed of our own making and if we could have set up Thoughtful in any other way we would have. But as we’ve mentioned before on day one we had NOTHING, which meant we needed a fairly large safety net for the first 12 months.

The whole experience of dealing with a bank has been a valuable one. With hindsight we can see how the loan added extra pressure in every area of our business. It’s an odd situation – the loan was the only reason we were able to set up in business AND the reason why we could never get started as a business.

The moral of the story is simple: A borrower nor a lender be (if you can help it, that is).

Or perhaps: A bank will give you an umbrella when the sun is shining but will ask for it back when it starts raining.

We guess it’s the price of an education and it’s a huge weight off our shoulders. We can now think about taking on staff and slowing things down (just a little).

Talking about an education…

Our most innovative project of the year was a collaboration with Stockport College which we called THE THOUGHTFUL SIX.

The beginning

Like all good ideas the Thoughtful Six project was painfully simple – rather than the students trying to find a work placement in lots of different agencies, the agency does the work placement within the college. We were surprised it hadn’t been done before in the UK.

Having said that we’re guessing not many studios could simply up sticks and move their whole operation into a college for just 12 months, even if they wanted to. We did it for lots of reasons:

– we wanted to be the first to do this
– to give a few students an opportunity we never had
– we were being paid a small fee
– but most of all (and for want of a better phrase) to get out of our comfort zones.

We’re far from being some cutting edge collective but we do recognise the value in trying new ways of working. We like to think of it like being an aerial…you’ve get to be out there to pick up something new. Which means we travel light, each of us owns a 17″ Macbook Pro and an iPhone – that’s it. We see routine as the enemy which is why we have no set offices, no big reception sofa and no library, we don’t even own a foosball table. That’s not to say we don’t have days when we’d love to sit on a big comfy reception sofa and have someone bring us a Cappuccino but right now we go to Starbucks for that.

The seed for this experiment was planted in our heads way back in March 2008.

Our first contact with Stockport College came through an email from design tutor, James Corazzo, inviting us to make a presentation to a group of second year design students. Our meeting coincided with a frustration James was feeling about student placements, the quality control of a work placement and how to better serve his students – as a lot of universities in the area have strong links with several design studios and will only take students from those courses.

Our first conversation centred around working with a small group of students on a live brief funded by the GMSA which provided a ‘real world’ experience from within the college environment. Whilst we all agreed it was a great idea, one day a week wouldn’t really give them the experience of being in a studio everyday and seeing the good, the bad and the ugly. So we went back to Stockport College with a more Thoughtful proposal… we’d close down our studio, pack up our D&AD Annuals and move into the college full time.

Before the move we visited the college for one day a week from August 2008, observing how the students work, behave and interact with each other with the intention of choosing six students who would be right for the project – one student described it as a 3 month interview. It was a difficult decision to make as there were lots who could have made it but in the end we chose Amy, John, Lauren, Ed, Carrie and Chris.

If it helps other students out there to know why we choose them, the answer is ‘attitude’. We needed to be sure we had six students that would get on and work together as a team. Creativity or being ‘the best’ didn’t come into it and we guess that being able to listen, learn, muck in and fit in with an established creative team is at the top of every prospective employers list when looking at a graduate. It would have been a disaster for everyone involved if a problem had developed between a student and Thoughtful which could have backfired onto our business and ultimately our homes.

Just to make the point again, we could easily give you the names of a dozen more students which we could have chosen. If we had the capacity (and the energy) to take more on then we would have. There was some real talent in that class.

The middle

The project began in earnest on January 8th.

It wasn’t the ideal start and we quickly realised we had stepped into a very different world to one we’re used to. Our studio was still being painted which meant we couldn’t get in it for two days and the student’s Macs were locked in a room waiting for someone to load them up with software.

Overall, it was really hard and rewarding work and with hindsight taking on six students was too ambitious, especially for three guys that could just about look after themselves. More often than not we’d spend a full day with the Thoughtful Six then have to go home and catch up by doing another full days work, simply because the students were pretty raw and needed constant attention. But that aside it was a wonderful experience, that’s not to say there weren’t any bad days – MARCH 6TH sticks in the mind as one of those days.

One of the most interesting, unexpected and rewarding aspects of being within the college walls didn’t involve the Thoughtful Six at all but rather Thoughtful and design tutor, James Corazzo.

Prior to the project our dialogue with tutors only extended as far as small talk before or after a presentation – there was no meaningful contact at all. If you would have asked us 12 months ago what we thought of design tutors we would probably have said they are out of touch or protected in the cosy bosom of education. And the working class chip on our shoulders would have lead us to believe tutors don’t work hard – not like us ‘real’ designers, anyway.

In fact, we couldn’t have been more wrong.

Our whole thinking about design education was challenged through talking and listening to James Corazzo, design tutor and brainchild behind the Thoughtful Six project, as well as SARAH TEMPLE from LCC.

In terms of a war, tutors are able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the soldiers in the trenches as well as view the battle from the top of the hill. This gives good tutors a unique and expansive view of the world and how design and their students fit into that world. Perhaps us industry types should try to join them at the top of the hill once in a while?

We realised that perhaps it’s okay that design education isn’t some boot camp for the industry where every student is drilled into preparation for a job. Because, guess what? We’ve learnt not every single design student really, really wants to be a successful designer and it’s us industry types which wrongly assume this. A vast majority of students find themselves moving into areas where creative thinking isn’t confined to visual communication and their design degree is just the first step into a wider business world. It has to be true, just LOOK AT THE FIGURES.

And as for working hard, well – we can tell you that the whole project was conceived, arranged, implemented and managed out of hours or as extra workload.

The end

We feel extremely proud about what the Thoughtful Six have achieved in such a short space of time. Each one of them has developed and excelled in very different areas and we’d recommend any one of them to a potential employer. For this reason we feel the project has been a success.

Mel Spooner and the Thoughtful Six at the THE Awards in London…don’t they all look smart.

It was also a success in the eyes of others too, with the project nominated for the TIMES HIGHER EDUCATION AWARDS, in the ‘Outstanding Employer Engagement Initiative’ category, and being shortlisted for a BBC Innovation Award. Unfortunately the Thoughtful Six didn’t pick up the Times gong, but just being in the running told us the project had some impact. We’re keeping our fingers and toes crossed for the BBC award which has yet to be announced.

There’s so many people we need to thank for making the project happen but we need to give James Corazzo and Mel Spooner the biggest of Thoughtful thanks. Both are talented, dedicated and inspirational educators to be around – Stockport College and their students are very lucky to have them. Their tireless efforts made sure the students and Thoughtful got the most out of the experience. We can’t say for sure if there are other tutors out there like them but if there is the future of our industry is in safe hands.

We’d also like to thank Laura, Dion and Greg at D&AD for their time and support, Mark at CR for shining their spotlight on the project and everyone who kindly contributed to the blog.

Not forgetting Amy, Carrie, Chris, Ed, John and Lauren. We hope you got as much out of the project as we did and we’d like to thank you for your patience and boundless enthusiasm.

Our only disappointment about the project has been the reaction (or lack of it) from other tutors within design education. James Corazzo would argue that the change in the Thoughtful Six has been profound so clearly the project has some value. James would also argue that in education its people are more reflective and it takes time for any ripples to move out. We’d argue that in our industry time is one thing you don’t have.

The big question is ‘would we do it again?’. The short answer is ‘Yes’. To say ‘No’ would mean the project hasn’t worked when clearly it has (in our eyes at least). Is there anything we’d change? Yes, lots – being within the college walls also brought with it its own set of problems not just in terms of the mindset of the students but also the practicalities of how to run a business when you’re being asked (nicely) to leave so security can lock up (on one occasion Chris got locked in the college). Or trying to fit a project around the student’s mid-week Critical Studies. But this is all part and parcel of trying out something which has never been done before and it’s a small price to pay when you see what can be achieved with six students who didn’t know how to make a pdf twelve months ago.

And now we’re at the other end we all have a clearer idea on how to make this model work better and benefit more students.

We’d whole heartedly recommend other design studios engage with their local design college or university. Yes, the stakes are high but so are the rewards because we found nurturing new talent feeds a part of the soul which money or awards can’t.

Trouble in paradise?

Perhaps it was the general mood of the nation, coupled with being tired all the time and watching every penny go into paying off the loan quickly which led to our first ‘SOME KIND OF MONSTER‘ moment in February. Clearly we’d been trying to take too much on at once, while not doing enough to keep all the plates spinning. Something had to give, and one day things came to a head.

There are no gory details really. Voices were raised, fingers were pointed but it made us realise that we didn’t communicate enough with each other. It seems daft because there are only three of us, and we’re in the business of communication. We now don’t let things stew as much and can be quite blunt with our criticism of each other at times, but hopefully it’ll help keep us all singing from the same carol sheet.

Just an observation: David and Clare at howies described their business like having a baby. You are the parent. You watch it try to walk. You pick it up when it falls. No one cares about it like you. No one frets like a parent. We’d like to add to that list: Tired all the time. Irritable. Never go out.

The other six months of 2009

It’s not just the pennies we’ve been watching this year but also the hours spent pitching. And by our calculations we’ve spent just under six months producing work for pitches during 2009, which is quite a shock. Fortunately, we won far more than we lost but it could easily have been a different situation.

We’re not going to start preaching about free pitching. It’s never going away, besides it would be hypocritical for us to do so and like most studios we can see the argument from both sides.

We’d be very interested to hear from other people about free pitching during a recession. Have you found you’re pitching more and against more agencies for smaller chunks of business? In business terms we’re new to this game and don’t really have any frame of reference.

To wrap up

Having never run a business through a RECESSION before we weren’t too sure what to expect this year but it didn’t take a genius to know we needed to be disciplined and prepared to roll up our sleeves a bit further – we’re expecting 2010 to be just as challenging as the cut backs from 2009 kick in and we move into the second half of the much feared W-shaped recession.

But if the thought of this tough economic climate lasting another twelve months depresses you this Christmas Day have a look at this wonderful post by MICHAEL BIERUT, it’s an article which we drew a lot of strength from because it highlighted the lessons we were learning to survive the downturn are exactly the same lessons on which to run a design practice in the good times.

So even though we’re still in the worst recession since, well, ever, we’re very pleased with how things have gone this year (although one Managing Director described us, amongst other things, as “ALL ARSE AND NO SUBSTANCE“). We started projects for the British Council, COI, Nesta, Soil Association, Tate Liverpool and the Royal Mail, as well as continuing our relationship with D&AD, howies, Liverpool Biennial and innocent. And we’re going into 2010 on a solid footing – loan free, money in the bank and with several really exciting projects to think about.

(We won’t show you any work we’ve done this year just yet, as we want to get it all up on our website very soon.)

Finally, we couldn’t go without giving some Thoughtful thanks to those people who have supported us during a tough 2009 and helped shape our year. In no particular order:

Mel, James, Lynn, Ian, Gary, Amy, Lauren, Carrie, Chris, Ed, John, Tony, Chris Chad, Glenn, Michael J., Greg Q., Sarah T., Richard S., Tony D., Mark S., Dion, Laura, Rhiannon, Mat W., Andrew K., Alex, C3 Imaging, Griff, Ed, Alistair, Jemima, Jennifer, Ian, Mat M., Antony, Paul, Sally, Lewis, Lorenzo, Benedict, Adrian S., Patrick B., Paula S., Allen W., Audrey, Adrian, Kevin, Mark, David, Clare, Ade, Laura, Andy, Rowena, Dan, Kate, Mike, Pat, Andrew, Nous Vous, Kev, Mike and the Super Furry Animals.

And not forgetting Tracy, Emma and Laura.

Thanks for taking the time to read this post.

Have a very merry Christmas.
James/Stuart/Chris