10 Year Anniversary
On this day 10 years ago I was 8 months into starting my own company, Verg. The few clients I had regular work with disappeared thanks to the GFC drying up their market. I was completely invisible to the world. Quickly churning through my life’s savings with a second child on the way, I was staring down the barrel of self employment failure. Not one to give up, I had to start becoming wise with my time & make a plan. My plan was simple: 1) Specialise in what I love doing. 2) Passionately apply myself to the execution of every design. 3) Overdeliver and over present to every client. 4) Share my work to social media. Within a few months, this plan started to work and I got back on track.
The last 10 years have been an amazing journey filled with many achievements. I became a specialist in logo & identity design whilst also being recognised for lettering, calligraphy & typeface design. I’ve worked with some of the most well respected global brands and helped shine a light on many more of the smallest. I’ve been published, won awards, appeared on numerous podcasts and spoken to hundreds of people with a microphone in hand. I’ve worked for celebrities and musicians, having my work lit up in Time Square and exposed to millions on TV shows. I’ve acquired new skills by stepping outside of my comfort zone many times over. Taught workshops at home & abroad and met lifelong friends in-person and on-line within the community. Oh! And I also work with a lot of beer.
It hasn't always been easy though. I’ve had my fair share of uncertainty, experiencing dry spells that have undone all the good work I previously did. I’ve been wrapped up in social media when I should be creating and I’ve made bad contract decisions.
The reason I share all this, is because whilst years seem like they fly by, there is a lot you can achieve when you chip away at something. So here’s to the next 10 years and chipping away at a new set of goals whilst also keeping the current skills sharpened.
I’d like to thank every client, every person that’s followed me, liked or left a comment, reposted or shared my work, every person that’s inspired me to push my design skills further and every person that’s shown interest in my work.
Cheers
Matt (Verg)otis