Well, here we are. It’s hard to believe 10 years have passed since we launched Designerds (then ATOMIC D), our creative agency born from the simple dream of approaching work from a creative-first point of view. The journey has been exhilarating, marked by peaks and valleys, spanning moments of sheer terror to overwhelming joy.
As I reflect on the last decade, I can't help but acknowledge all the milestones that have shaped our path. From weathering a global pandemic to transitioning from brick-and-mortar offices and thriving in a 100% remote setup, we've learned to adapt and evolve in the face of adversity.
The road we’ve traveled
Amid the challenges, there have been many triumphs for our small-but-might agency. We've had the privilege of partnering with some of the biggest names in the industry — from tech giants like Samsung, Twitter and Square to retail powerhouses like Walmart and Amazon. Our creative collaborations have also included entertainment brands like Paramount Pictures, sports apparel like The North Face, and lifestyle brands including New Balance and Pandora. Each project has presented an opportunity to showcase our passion, talent and dedication to excellence.
The work produced during this time fills me with immense pride. Breathtaking videos and animations, captivating illustrations, dazzling designs... every day, our team delivers exceptional results that exceed client expectations. And while the journey hasn't always been smooth sailing, every obstacle only fueled our determination to push the boundaries and redefine what's possible for the future of creative services.
While we originated as your typical ‘catchall’ agency, as industry demands shifted, Designerds became laser-focused on delivering what was required in the face of a global pandemic.
Over the last few years, we’ve refocused our priorities and scaled with new services, rebranded and expanded to offer both subscription and studio engagements under one banner, diversified the team further by hiring internationally, and tested new tools — all with the aim of creating positively charged partnerships grounded in trust and efficiency.
In the last year alone, we’ve seen industry priorities shift and again repositioned ourselves to bring our clients best-in-class offerings. Due to demand, we also expanded our Design-as-a-Service subscription opportunities to include copywriting, art direction and project management.
And it’s not just the Designerds business that has evolved. We’ve witnessed remarkable changes across the entire industry. We’ve seen the world shift entirely across how we interact and work with each other. We've seen the ways we ingest information, purchase everyday products and get around change substantially.
Just think of where things were when we started this endeavor…
The way we were in 2014
Cultural phenomena like "Game of Thrones" and "Breaking Bad” captivated the world, while films like "12 Years a Slave" and "Gravity” took home Oscars. The Pantone Color of the Year was Radiant Orchid, symbolizing creativity and innovation in design.
Children everywhere fell in love with Frozen, learning to let it go alongside Elsa. Jimmy Fallon took over The Tonight Show, Ellen snapped that famous celeb selfie, Kim and Kanye tied the knot, and that ice bucket challenge was a thing.
In San Francisco, the birthplace of our little agency, the title of America’s best-performing city was just bestowed. Young tech workers continued to flock here while rents rose by astronomical leaps and bounds. The decorative lights on the Bay Bridge were turned off and then back on again. We lost Robin Williams. Uber faced growing controversies over pay, regulation frustrations in the face of international expansion and the ‘hammer assault’ along with new competitors. And with each turn, the tech industry furthered its foothold throughout the Bay Area.
The next decade of design
Yet as proud as I am of all that we’ve accomplished, how much stellar work we’ve produced and how much fun we’ve had doing it, I don’t like to dwell in the past. Rather, I’m shifting my gaze to what we'll accomplish with optimism and excitement.
The Designerds model is capable of revolutionizing the relationship between agency and client, paving the way for a new era of collaborative innovation. And we must be doing it right because in the past couple of years we’ve watched the rise of several imitators and replicators. Many miss the plot by cutting corners and offering shortcuts, while we remain hyper-focused on our commitment to fostering true creative partnerships with our clients.
By leveraging technology to embrace industry changes — I could go on for hours when it comes to AI’s growing role in our work — we envision an expanding list of services evolving to meet the ever-changing needs of our clients.
At Designerds, our brand evolution mirrors our journey. Our unique agency offering fills a crucial gap in the market, providing unparalleled support to in-house creative teams and delivering results that exceed expectations.
Soon, we'll be introducing new proprietary tools that bring Designerds best practices to our clients through technology. Our position as an agency partner having creative professionals embedded directly with in-house teams has allowed us a unique vantage point, one we’re using to explore new efficiencies and optimizations to the production process. I’ll be sharing more details about these opportunities later this year.
So, as we raise a toast to the past 10 years, we extend our heartfelt gratitude to everyone who has been a part of this incredible journey – clients, partners, and, most importantly, our talented team of Designerds. Here's to another 10 years of creativity, innovation and limitless possibilities.
Here’s to the future of creative services, and another decade of design!
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