Achieving 25% studio profit directing £1m+ accounts
Overview
Before shifting into product design, I was an Account Director at The One Off, a London-based creative agency. During my ~8 year tenure, I worked with some of the world's biggest brands: Farrow & Ball, TK Maxx and Toshiba, plus many more.
My role was truly multidisciplinary, meaning I got across every aspect of branding and design–from scriptwriting through to retail strategy.
Below is a flavour of some of my biggest achievements during this time and projects I'm super proud of.
My contribution
-Client management -Account handling -Project management -Research, strategy, insights -Copywriting, scriptwriting, naming -Managing a team of 2x account managers -Leading a retained team of designers
The team
-Account Director (me) -2x account managers -Designers and engineers -External contractors
Year
2021-2021
Process
Exceptional craft meets business impact
My experience as an Account Director feeds directly into my practice as a Product Designer:
- Business-minded designer
- Strong growth mindset
- Brand and marketing expertise
- Collaborative by nature
- Strong communication skillset
Outcome
Business Impact
- Consistently met project profitability targets of 25%+, driving overall studio profit growth
- Built strong, long-term client relationships, with an average client retention of 5+ years
- Secured new business wins and expanded existing accounts, with some achieving 100% year-over-year revenue growth
Testimonial
"Jess was an outstanding Account Director with a remarkable ability to get projects moving while maintaining excellent attention to detail. Not only did she manage projects seamlessly through the studio, but she consistently went beyond her core role by contributing to creative outputs like copywriting, customer journey strategies, wireframing, and more. Jess has a strong creative instinct and an innate understanding of what’s best for the customer, the client, and the brand as a whole. Her ability to balance both the strategic and creative sides of a project made her an invaluable asset to the team."
Amber Wilson
Design Director, The One Off