We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Derek Mohr a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Derek, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright – so having the idea is one thing, but going from idea to execution is where countless people drop the ball. Can you talk to us about your journey from idea to execution?

Oh man, the initial idea for Grand Rapids Branding Co. could technically be from 2016, if you count the original design I made. I always felt like it deserved to be printed, but never really knew how to go about it. One, ten, two hundred? Do I want to sell them? How was I going to sell them? This sounds tough, never mind. Earlier this year, I kind of reorganized my whole portfolio, and stumbled upon that old design. At this point, I’ve been much more involved in web development, and have worked for a few different companies with differing levels of learning. I talked through a business idea with my coworkers, and eventually I had everything together to get a Shopify website up. I launched with just two designs, so I could take the time to learn what things I’d need to be aware of, and I’m about to have a very big drop of new designs!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I got into logo design from my college path. I switched into graphic design in school, mostly from a love of typography. I honestly could (and do, when I’m traveling) stare at the letters in big signs or posters, just to pick out things I do & don’t like about it. My logos are generally very type-based, so I get to indulge in my favorite kind of design every day! I got into web development because there was an opening in the agency I’d been following for a few years. That gave me the ability to gain a lot of experience in a ton of web platforms, which directly translated to being able to launch Grand Rapids Branding Co. this year. It’s also given me the chance to help other people create ideas of their own, so there’s that additional satisfaction, too.

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

I actually wonder what a “non-creative” person thinks about during the day pretty often. I’m also kind of unsure about describing someone as creative – I feel like a lot of people are and aren’t at different times. I feel like creatives are basically well-branded neurodivergents. Intensely focused, disorganized, yada yada. You can’t really explain the need to make things, because it kind of just “is”. Does that sound weird? I feel like it sounds weird.

Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Yeah, other people. I wish I would have thought to share resources and partner up earlier on, instead of trying to learn too large of a breadth of things for a while—just because I felt like it’s better if I did it all. Other people can constantly teach you things too, rather than banging on your keyboard when google isn’t cutting it. I also should have been sharing more work, more often. There’s a pressure that you feel when you’re going to show something to the public; and it always feels like you shouldn’t, because it’s “not done yet”. “It could be better”. I’ve learned to turn that pressure into a constructive internal critique of what I do and don’t like about it, and it makes me strive to want to make better things—since ideally more people will be seeing them.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://grandrapidsbranding.co/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grandrapidsbranding.co/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/onemohrtime/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/grbrandingco
• Other: Dribbble: https://dribbble.com/OneMohrTime

Image Credits
Leigh Ann Cobb Peter Mayor