Designer Jack Lawrence first to move into IncuHive New Milton
GRAPHIC design and branding business Tails Creative, which prides itself on being on-trend, was the first to join the A&T’s IncuHive New Milton.
Founded by designer Jack Lawrence, the business works with local and national firms to help them get the best out of their brand and spread the word about what they do.
Jack’s ethos of keeping tabs on what is fashionable and keeping designs simple has served him well so far. “I use my knowledge of design to make things clear and simple; I take away what is not needed,” said Jack.
“In graphic design these days, there is a lot that is very over-complicated and not very well thought through – you should take away the superfluous.”
Jack has a solid base of clients, which includes Southampton Football Club, The Pixel Machine Photo Booths and Kernel Cobs. More recently he has worked on a range of innovative projects, including cafes for The Honesty Group and a new Lymington marina venture.
The ‘Tails’ part of the business name was inspired by Jack’s attention to detail. It is that, as well as his passion for advertising and design and his interest in what motivates and drives people, which gives him an edge over his rivals.
“A big part of advertising is understanding the customer and market research,” he told the A&T. “It’s important to fully understand who your audience is before you come up with the concept and to know how people are going to react to that content,” said Jack, who studied graphic design at Bournemouth University.
He adds the Incuhive premises in Compton Road has helped. “It’s very open here and you can speak with like-minded people – there’s a lot of excitement and inspiration,” said Jack, who lives in Lymington.
“It’s good to be able to help out people who are in different areas [of business]. It’s a creative environment and quite diverse – there’s a real buzz.
It is perhaps no surprise Jack went into the creative industry, since his mum was an artist and his grandfather an illustrator.
His father was a videographer who worked on professional productions for Granada Television and for the Men & Motors channel.
After graduating, Jack got a job with the A&T as a page designer. Two years later he left to work at Southampton Football Club.
“The working atmosphere was different, the budgets a lot bigger and the work timeframes a lot shorter,” he said.
“I did anything from academy brochures to wall vinyls and branding for Staplewood [the club’s training ground], academy areas, changing rooms and the tunnel.
After three years, Jack decided to follow his dream of setting up his own business.
“I decided to start out on my own – I wanted to do some work in my local area and help out businesses there,” Jack said. “I love helping start-up companies, it’s fresh and a real challenge.”
Jack has been so buoyed by his success so far, he is already thinking about expanding in the future.
“I do work with a few freelancers, designers and illustrators, and they can give me some pointers in areas that I cannot do 100%,” he added. “It’s a fast-moving industry. A lot of people have switched over to digital and I have been doing a lot more digital work than usual.
“Most of my craft was on the print side, but I’m doing a lot of web design; I’ve already moved across as I want to make sure I don’t get left behind.”
