Your ideas, imagination and creativity will shape Scotland and its economy. If you’re a designer, or you have a clever idea that you want to develop, you should consider Converge Challenge. You have everything to gain and no downside by getting involved with Converge Challenge. It’s a proven path for many successful businesses that have benefited from the advice, support and investment that comes with the Challenge.
As a designer I really want to see more applications from design, architecture and art institutions and I urge those of you with ideas, however early the stage of development, to explore how you might take them forward as part of the Challenge. I started my business when I was at art school and so can you.
Starting you own business is a great adventure and you never know where it will take you and who you will meet and collaborate with along the way. Having your own business is hard work but it’s also exciting and opens doors that would otherwise remain shut. Businesses can be about money but they can be about so much more. You can create a business that reflects your values and makes a contribution to society as well as the economy.
As a designer with 30 years’ experience of running a business that operates in 32 countries I have collaborated with, and worked for, some of the world’s best-known brands including BBC, British Airways, Missoni, RBS and Rezidor. I’ve also travelled the world and worked internationally on projects for government and the British Council. So, as you shape your ideas, just think, you may already be on the path to creating, or collaborating with, a world-leading brand.
Before I sign off I’d like to leave you with one thought. Every business has a brand, created and controlled by it, or created for it by the people who experience it and use its products or services. When you’re building your business idea it can be very useful to think of it as a brand.
Firstly, understand that you’re already an unconscious brand expert. You make decisions every day about what to buy, where to go and who to stand next to.
Secondly, to give yourself the chance to become a brand player, you need to unlock your unconscious expertise by s-l-o-w-i-n-g down and unpicking your motivation for wanting that thing you’re about to click and collect. Ask yourself, what’s the context within which it’s displayed? What other brands does it rub up against? Everything means something so peel back the layers and ask questions. Better still, go and shop without buying and take time to pick apart the visual, verbal and cultural layers of each brand you’re attracted to.
Thirdly, develop your critical skills and be objective about what you’re actually buying, or buying into, and this will give you power over your business, and your life.
When it comes to brands it helps to open your ‘eyes’, test your decision-making, and stop being a fan of brands…start to become a brand player. Converge Challenge might just be the thing that helps you unlock the potential of your idea…helping you to build your business and your brand.
**Converge Challenge dedicates a £10,000 cash prize to the Design and Creativity Award - aimed at innovative ideas that demonstrate creativity, skill and talent. This Award is applicable to a broad range of sectors and must demonstrate that business growth is dependent upon commercial viability of the innovative aspects of the product or service. All those who progress to the Converge Challenge Top 30 will be eligible for the Design and Creativity Award. Please enter via the standard Converge Challenge entry form by Thursday 29 March 2018 (5.00pm)**
