My Journey to Spark: Alex Phipps

Tell us a bit about who you are and what you do at Spark? 

I’m a Senior Designer at Creative Spark, I work with everyone within the wider Spark team to deliver design work, most notably branding from conception to completion. I also work across our retained accounts, where I oversee the upkeep of existing brand guidelines on newly created assets. My role requires me to work with almost everyone within the team so requires loads of collaboration, which I particularly enjoy!

What’s the best thing about working in the agency/creative industry space? 

The thing I love most about working within a creative agency is the energy of the studio. It’s great being surrounded by people who are so passionate about creativity, it’s not a dull or corporate environment by any means. Everyone feels free to share their ideas, we’re always chatting about stuff we like and things that we’ve discovered out in the advertising world that intrigues us.

Tell us a bit about your journey before Spark 

At university I was really interested in brand design so when I left, I spent the first 6+ years of my career in the retail space designing packaging. I learnt loads during this time, namely how to make a brand stand out on shelf amongst an array of competitors, and the ins and outs of the printing world. When I joined the Spark team, I wanted to broaden my experience and knowledge in other areas, which is exactly what our diverse range of clients have enabled me to do.

We’re a close team at Spark and everyone gets involved in lots of aspects of the work. When we were searching for the right person to join as Design Director, you stepped up and helped us through that period of change, taking the lead in the studio. 

How did you feel about taking on more of a leadership role to support the team? 

It was a busy time at Spark when I joined, with lots of new business opportunities on the horizon.  I knew that in joining a smaller team, I would have to take a more hands-on role and support the team which I have enjoyed, but I found it especially fulfilling to be able to lead and oversee the creative for a group brand, and all its subsidiary brands, within a relatively tight timeline.

What was the biggest thing you learned from it? 

I’ve learnt loads from this experience, most importantly I learnt that it’s imperative that everyone is aligned on a job, ensuring that little to no time gets wasted at each stage of the process. I also learnt that it’s important to spot and support colleagues who suddenly find themselves under pressure with excess workload.  It costs nothing to take a few minutes out of your day to help someone else with their job and relieve some of that pressure.

Tell us an unpopular opinion 

Garlic bread is overrated (feel like I’m gonna get slated for this one!)

Do you have a party trick/fun fact about yourself? 

The first logo I designed at age 14 was for ‘webuyanycar.com’, that same logo is still the one they use today!