Commercialising Creatives

Daniel is the co-chair of pro-manchester’s creative and digital sector group, the president of the Manchester Publicity Association and has previously been recognised as the Digital, Media or Creative Professional of the Year at the Made In Manchester Awards.

He is a passionate ambassador for Manchester and the North West’s creative, digital and media industries and has hosted and spoken at conferences and events for the likes of pro-manchester, the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, Salford Media Festival, the MPA, Manchester Metropolitan University and many more.

Working with Manchester Metropolitan University, Oldham College and the UTC @ MediaCity, Daniel is also a leading figure locally in setting the agenda for training and retaining the best creative, digital and media talent in the city.

Kelly is the founder and Director of Making You Content. Having cut her teeth as a freelancer in the creative sector, she identified a need for a business that would bridge the gap between one-man bands and full-service providers: a copywriting agency was born. Four years later, she has a thriving agency in Manchester’s Northern Quarter that helps a wide range of brands grow through communication.

Derek is an inspirational creative leader with over 20 years’ experience most notably in the retail sector. Having lived through the digital transformation of our industry and the birth of e-commerce he has built up a wealth of experience and insight into the ever-changing role that creative plays in contributing to successful businesses.

He has contributed to the development of brands from inception to £1billion+ revenue as well as driving through transformational projects that support creative excellence.

With an unswerving focus on the commercial and emotional effectiveness of great creative Derek remains a passionate supporter of our craft.

Biogs are a challenge aren’t they? How do you sum up a varied (to say the least) 35 year career in just a few paragraphs? Well, here’s an attempt.

Nowadays, Michele is a Life Path Mentor, Coach, Speaker and Author. For 23 years, she was a sleeves up, learn on the job grafter in some of the most successful full service agencies, learning at the feet of some of the most creative ‘characters’ in the biz.

She learned the hard way, about what it takes to stay creative while trying to eek out a decent living, satisfying boards and shareholders and about what it takes to stay sane in the process, even managing to have a life too. There aren’t many creative, professional or personal struggles that she isn’t familiar with or hasn’t had first hand experience of.

During her time in the industry, Michele became known for developing unconventional ways of developing business, teams and individuals that were often labelled ‘woo woo’, but that that no one could deny the effectiveness of.

She now shares her experience and learnings through her own business, Batshit Crazy, working on getting lives and work/businesses totally in sync, aligned and making a buck in the process. She encourages creativity, collaboration and bravery. No hiding or playing small allowed in the work she does.

Write a bio they said, it’ll be easy…

Take one, the corporate bio:
An experienced Creative Director with over 16 years’ award winning design and art direction. Strong conceptual thinker, outstanding visual and strategically focused thinker, blah blah blah…

Nope…

Take two, the hipster write-up:
Fixie owner, dreamer, tattoo addict, ninja, spectacular beard. Making at the junction of design and function to craft an inspiring, compelling and authentic brand narrative. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. My opinions belong to nobody but myself.

No chance…

Third time’s the charm, let’s call it like it is:
Not bad at drawing, a creative doer with a talent for telling a tall tale and spotting a bullshitter at 10 yards. Anally retentive, makes a good brew, loves old motorbikes. Bad kerning and incorrect use of hyphens and em-dashes keep me up at night.

That’s it. That’s me, Mike Griffiths.