Introducing Pete

21 March 2025

The Stats:

Nickname: Badger

Superpower: Can identify a font at long distance

Biggest work achievement: We created a website as part of the First World War centenary commemoration. It documents the lives of over 500 soldiers who didn’t survive the war, providing information about where they grew up, where they fought, and ultimately, where they died. The website is very interactive, allowing users to navigate information using historical maps, as well as through timelines and search. The website dynamically updates as new information is uploaded to the system.

I was told by our client that it had been considered, by one of the UK’s most prominent historical institutions, as among the finest websites of the centenary commemorations.

The website personalises history in a very visual and memorable way. It was a unique opportunity to use digital technology to tell a moving and important human story.

The big questions

Like any marketing agency worth its salt, let’s kick things off with an elevator pitch – can you describe your role in Pad in 5 words?

This is also difficult because I’m a real jack of all trades so picking one thing means excluding the others.

This perhaps covers it, in a sense:
Logical brain with creative heart

I’m often told I’m able to explain something quite technical in a simple and understandable way, but it’s not the only thing I do at Pad.

How about your origin story – what path led you to design?

Three things that defined my formative years – teaching myself to play guitar, being a graffiti artist (naughty boy!) and computer programming. They’ve all played a part in my career and how I ended up in the industry.

I fell into design entirely by accident, in my late teens. I heard about a hands-on graphic design course that taught design the old-fashioned way, almost entirely without computers. We had one Macintosh Classic between 20 students, running Photoshop version 2! (the current version of Photoshop is 26).

Hearing about the course, I managed to swat up on design and create a portfolio out of nothing, in a couple of evenings (being a bit of an autodidact has been a constant in my life) and persuade my future tutor to give me one of the limited places.

From that course, I got my first job, as a technical illustrator, working at a small illustration studio in London, mainly drawing cars and engines for Ford, but also some photographic illustration using Photoshop. While I loved that, I have always been really interested in letter forms – here’s where the graffiti comes in – so I made an active decision to try and get a job in publishing. My illustration background made me a useful candidate. I was able to help illustrate the magazines, and in return, I’d get to design and layout the magazines themselves – working with text, which I really enjoy.

After several years of that, I wanted to have a stab at branding design, so I did bit of this as a freelancer and then eventually doing a lot of it with Pad!

Soon after we started Pad, the demand for website design and development simply exploded. At that point, the computer programming I did as a 10-year-old became very useful!

Don’t be shy, what are 3 things that make you good at what you do?

• The ability to concentrate on a single large task
• Being a jack of all trades – I’ve always been really motivated to learn new skills.
• An ability to translate technical into human – so I’m told!

What is the worst piece of advice someone has given you?

At school, they had a careers system that would recommend a job role that is suited to your skills – I assume based on my grades or something. It said, ‘insurance broker’. Absolutely no offence to insurance brokers, but it couldn’t have been any less me!

What advice would you give to someone wanting to get into the design industry?

That’s a difficult question, as so much has changed since I got into the industry. One thing that is still as important now as ever, is to stand out from the crowd. When we’re hiring, I still get CVs that are just standard Word documents. You’re applying for a job at a creative agency, and your CV is in Arial?!! Bring out your personality and make your application stand out from the rest.

I’d also say be willing, persistent and enthusiastic – there are many more applicants than jobs, and it will take many attempts. Take any opportunity that comes your way.

Show you are a good communicator. So much of design is about communicating an idea and being able to take criticism and feedback.

Finally, have a diverse portfolio – show a range of work. Don’t show 10 pages on one project and two on the rest (that happens quite a lot!). If you don’t have any commercial examples, create your own. Show an eye for detail – make sure there are no spelling mistakes (again, it happens a hell of a lot!).

What would you be doing if you weren’t a director, designer and digital marketing maestro?

My other passion is music and audio production. I’d have loved to have been a sound designer or studio engineer. I’ve been making music since I was 13 and it’s still my main passion.

You’ve got control over the office party sound system – what’s on your playlist?

Despite my love of music, I mainly listen to voice – radio, podcasts etc. It can be about almost anything – music production, news, philosophy, tech, science, comedy or just some utter junk! Also, test cricket, although I don’t have the time I used to for that!

Can you share a project that you’ve been most proud of, and why you believe it hit the mark?

I’m probably most proud of my involvement in The Good Food Network website. They are a luxury French food online retailer, catering mainly to the consumer, but also to shops and restaurants. We’ve been working together for over 15 years. We oversaw their transition from a totally offline business to becoming a leading online shop in their field.

I’ve always worked very closely with them – they are not afraid of new ideas and that has allowed us to try lots of things out, seeing what works and what doesn’t.

We’re currently working on the fourth major iteration of the website. Working in the context of the luxury market scratches my itch creatively, as it allows for the elegant typography that I love.

What is your creative catalyst – where do you get your inspiration when it comes to design?

I’m a big fan of elegant design, minimalism and simplicity.

However, my inspiration has always primarily come from typography. It’s been my interest since I started my career. My second job was at a publishing agency, producing magazines, reports and other publications. I’ve always loved working with large amounts of text, making it as legible as possible while pleasing to the eye.

I also like to use words and letters as illustration. I don’t get to do much design work these days, but when I did, I would often create a design around the key statement rather than anything image-based – this is probably a hangover from working on magazines, where the headline is the element that draws the audience in.

What is next for you, and what are you most excited about for the future of Pad?

More of the same, please! We seem to be in a great place – the projects are interesting and varied and we’re working with clients that have larger marketing budgets which gives us more freedom with the work.

Also, having been around for so long, we’re in a perfect position to advise our clients on the big picture, what works strategically and what doesn’t. 10 years ago, it might have been limited to the visual and the message. Now it’s that plus much more, we’re helping our clients to make effective business decisions – and that’s more fulfilling.