We caught up with Jake Leach-Perry, Graduate Industrial Designer at Joseph Joseph, to find out more about what he’s been up to since winning the Brilliantly Useful Design Award at last year’s New Designers.
The main take away from New Designers for me was getting my grad job. If I didn’t get the opportunity to attend, I would not be working at Joseph Joseph today – so the experience was massively positive! It was also the first time I got to see what the cohorts of other universities were doing; it was interesting to see the different units and outputs between courses with the same title.
It is exhausting though, presenting your work all week is hard. You end up giving the same pitch a hundred times, especially because it’s difficult to tell who’s a potential employer and who’s not. Perseverance is key though; after the show (once you start following up on business cards and on LinkedIn) you’ll realise how many people from industry you were chatting to. I don’t think there’s a better platform to advertise yourself!
Ultimately, I will always remember New Designers for how well it capped off my uni experience. Sharing the experience with my course mates and all the other graduates was the highlight – celebrating our last chapter of university together. Bringing the family along is a special moment too.
My role at Joseph Joseph is a Graduate Industrial Designer, and they’ve given the unique opportunity of being responsible for leading several of my own projects through the early stages of development. Working on projects that are meant for retailers and department stores brings a new set of perspectives that I never considered during uni. Understanding the commercial realities of product design is quite a steep learning curve, especially getting into SKUs, ranges and shipping costs. Ensuring the product’s USPs are immediately identifiable to consumers is extremely important for later down the line when the products hit the shelves – I find this pretty challenging! Luckily, I’m working with an adept team who are patiently guiding me through the process.
I believe the two most important things when you graduate is your portfolio and how you present yourself. My advice for presenting yourself is the employer needs to think you’d be nice to work with, and it’s okay to be visibly nervous. I don’t think I qualify for more detailed advice than that.
I do have more thoughts on portfolios though; I think the biggest problem with undergraduate portfolios is story telling. A good portfolio is successful thanks to product design, graphic design, and your communication skills showcasing them clearly. Too many undergraduates show a page of sketches, then a page of card models, then themselves prototyping, and then some renders. Repeat that for 5 projects. Whilst these are all important skills to showcase, every project has a better story than that. What were the challenges you faced? Show a page on your first idea that you modelled and demonstrate why it didn’t work. How did that lead you to the final solution? It’s okay to have a lot of pages project. Whilst doing this, you will demonstrate all your skills organically. Yes, you might need to redo some sketches or make some up (everyone does it) but showing your process will make you unique. Finally, I’d keep to 2-4 of your best projects, and have a portfolio for the job you want not just the projects you’ve done.
Mental Health Awareness Week: the next gen’s focus on wellbeing in design It’s Mental Health Awareness Week this week, and we’re shining a spotlight on a number of innovative graduates who are pioneering design with a focus on the impact
3 QUESTIONS WITH BETH FELLOWS, TU CLOTHING We’re thrilled to sit down with Beth Fellows, Assistant Designer at TU Clothing, to dive into her world of creativity and innovation. How do you keep yourself updated with the latest design trends
3 QUESTIONS WITH BETH DABORN, TU CLOTHING Introducing Beth Daborn, a rising talent in the world of print design, and a Graduate Assistant at TU Clothing. What was your experience like at New Designers? New Designers was an amazing experience
