General info
Designer
Chicago Area
Chicago Area
I believe great design creates positive emotional connections that bring brands to life in the hearts and minds of consumers. Faulty, sloppy, indifferent design does just the opposite. I’m an extremely dedicated Creative Director who’s passionate about making the design great every time. I’ve succeeded at this for a wide range of clients – from McDonald's and OililyUSA to Frontera Foods and other local Chicago establishments.
Packaging Design is my passion.
Print production is my secret obsession.
Branding and Identity should be timeless.
I happened to find myself in the world of Promotions.
Direct Mail taught me to admire a 3% return.
Web Design can make me swear at computers.
POP and in-store merchandising is harder than it looks.
Social Media...talk amongst yourselves.
Packaging Design is my passion.
Print production is my secret obsession.
Branding and Identity should be timeless.
I happened to find myself in the world of Promotions.
Direct Mail taught me to admire a 3% return.
Web Design can make me swear at computers.
POP and in-store merchandising is harder than it looks.
Social Media...talk amongst yourselves.
Experience
ACD
Momentum
ACD on the Mondelez business. Designing and creating events to promotions for numerous Nabisco brands. Work includes designing 360 ideas and partnerships such as Back to School promotions and events with One Direction and 5 Seconds of Summer, a nationwide Ritz sampling tour and a 3-year partnership with US Soccer and MLS.
Independent Design Director
Akimbo
Akimbo is a boutique design firm focuses on packaging design and innovation. While I have been on contract for six months, my duties as a Design Director were: managing, presenting, concepting, designing, pre-production and comps for national brands.
Creative Director / ACD
The Marketing Store
I'm an energetic Creative Director, but a graphic designer at heart.
I started at the Marketing Store as a Freelancer which quickly turned into a full-time position as the Associate Creative Director on McDonald's. The Marketing Store's claim to fame is creating the largest promotion in the world - Monopoly at McDonald's. I became the Monopoly designer in 2005 and am now the Creative Director. Over the years, Monopoly has become the largest, most lucrative restaurant promotion in history. In fact, it is so successful that all competitive promotional activity goes dark during the same period. But the Monopoly promotion is not the only thing that I'm proud of...other clients include:
Coca-Cola (POS, shopper marketing, advertising)
McDonald's Global Initiatives (2010 Olympics, identities, packaging, web design)
AT+T (direct mail and website)
and DeVry (identity, direct mail)
I co-managed a team of extremely talented creatives. Each and everyone of them are unique and they embrace different facets of design: interactive, advertising, promotions, design and brand design. We were a tight group that was built on respect and creativity.
I work closely with Planning and Account from the beginning stages of concepting and see the execution of projects till they are finished with Production.
I started at the Marketing Store as a Freelancer which quickly turned into a full-time position as the Associate Creative Director on McDonald's. The Marketing Store's claim to fame is creating the largest promotion in the world - Monopoly at McDonald's. I became the Monopoly designer in 2005 and am now the Creative Director. Over the years, Monopoly has become the largest, most lucrative restaurant promotion in history. In fact, it is so successful that all competitive promotional activity goes dark during the same period. But the Monopoly promotion is not the only thing that I'm proud of...other clients include:
Coca-Cola (POS, shopper marketing, advertising)
McDonald's Global Initiatives (2010 Olympics, identities, packaging, web design)
AT+T (direct mail and website)
and DeVry (identity, direct mail)
I co-managed a team of extremely talented creatives. Each and everyone of them are unique and they embrace different facets of design: interactive, advertising, promotions, design and brand design. We were a tight group that was built on respect and creativity.
I work closely with Planning and Account from the beginning stages of concepting and see the execution of projects till they are finished with Production.
Designer
Carrmichael Design
Carrmichael Design is a small design firm in Chicago that focused on local companies, such as Rick Bayless' Frontera Grill, Holiday Club, Westend Dental and many Chicago restaurants as well as national companies such as Equity Office.
Work included: Logos, package design, identities, web were our specialties. You can see my work on the shelves at Whole Foods and Crate&Barrel - just look for any Frontera product - salsas to pizzas.
Work included: Logos, package design, identities, web were our specialties. You can see my work on the shelves at Whole Foods and Crate&Barrel - just look for any Frontera product - salsas to pizzas.
Designer
Draft Worldwide (now DraftFCB)
Draft Worldwide (now DraftFCB) was a 400+ person agency off of Chicago's Mag Mile. I joined the 50+ creative team where I designed and concepted direct mail for Sprint, Holiday Inn and British Airways.
Designer / Production
Oilily USA
If you know about Oilily, then you have good taste in clothing. Oilily was started in the Netherlands and began opening stores in the USA in the early '90s. I worked in the stores through college and then landed my first design job at the US headquarters. Here, I assisted with the design of the US catalogues, in-store signage and window displays.
Education
BA Graphic Design
University of Illinois
I was accepted into the University of Illinois through a ballet scholarship and then became one of the lucky 40 students accepted into the Graphic Design program. The GD program consisted of an intense study of typography, layout, color theory and the very first HTML class. Remember rubylith and Quark Express? They were my nemesis.
Masters in Education
Dominican University
I'll be taking my design skills into the classroom as an art teacher in the Fall of 2017.