We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Garett Southerton a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Garett, thanks for joining us today. Let’s jump right into how you came up with the idea?
I’ve always been creative! From hacking my toys together to photography, but I was about 12 when I got my first computer and shortly after that I was bored because the internet wasn’t like it is now – I had nothing to really do. I stumbled upon AOL Hometown and taught myself to code and make graphics so I could have the best page amongst my friends.
Not much longer after that MySpace started to blow up so I took my coding and design skills to make custom layouts for my page there. A lot of people were digging it and I wanted to buy Photoshop. Since my mom couldn’t afford it I figured I’d start making layouts for others and charging them – and that’s when my first design business started.
I did well with it for a kid – I started working with musicians and charging $100 per layout. From there it transitioned into album covers, flyers, and eventually logos and social media work, but then I ran into this problem. Everyone just referred to me as their “graphics guy / kid” and didn’t care to listen to my ideas. Instead they wanted to just tell me what to make and have me do it.
This infuriated me over time because I was so much more than that. I studied design psychology, marketing, and explored the in’s and out’s of what was working for others – but no one cared, they put me in a box. That’s when I discovered branding.
I learned to position myself as more than the “graphics guy” and more so as an essential partner to my clients. As my business grew so did one apparent thing that no one else is really doing in this space; building foundational strategies and then infusing the visuals to further tell those brand stories in an honest way – I call it intentional branding.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am Garett Southerton, a Long Island, New York native that specializes in Intentional Branding. I run my own branding studio, Garett®, to help the change makers, game changers, and trailblazers making a difference in this world position themselves and connect with their communities.
I do that in a few ways; working 1:1 to create strategic visuals in my Intentional Brand System process, 1:1 coaching, or my soon to launch brand strategy program, Brandtentional.
The core belief in my process that sets me a part from others in this industry is my mindset and beliefs. We all need to make an income, but everyone wants to just focus on the money – the money is the outcome though. The focus at the end of the day is impact. How can we serve our people with what we do best and communicate it effectively? When you establish that and implement the proper systems, the rest of that falls into place.
When I started out I initially only served the music industry because I was obsessed with hip hop – the 90’s to early 00’s were a wild time to grow up in New York with artists like Biggie to Nas, Jay Z, 50 Cent and too many others to name. I wanted to be part of that movement in a way I could contribute, which was websites and other visuals.
However over the years I wasn’t feeling fulfilled in that space anymore. It was too transactional and not much about making something meaningful. Ultimately I transitioned my business to help those chasing a bigger change in their industries to make a difference. From coaches that focus on energy levels to real estate agents looking to humanize the process – it’s all about intentionally setting out to impact your people.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
The mission is all about impact – using my creativity to make the world a better place than I found it in.
Through my business, I use design with strategy to empower disruptive entrepreneurs that challenge the status quo of their industries. Those special minds that have had enough of “this is how it’s always been done” or “this is what makes money” and are after a real difference.
While personally through my photography, I capture moments of peace. Imagery that lets you vibe out and forget all of the chaos life sometimes throws at you. It’s an escape, a form of gratitude to nature and all things tranquil.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
Without a doubt being myself is my special ingredient.
It’s the biggest and rarest “strategy” there is today because everybody wants to be the next Gary Vaynerchuk, make viral content like Mr. Beast, or run their brand like Apple or whoever is popular in their niche, but nobody wants to be themselves.
Don’t get me wrong all of those are great, but we’re in the era of authenticity. People don’t want the “next” anyone – they want someone who connects with them to help them solve their problems.
There’s not another person in the world that can do exactly what you do, in the way you do it, with the experience you’ve had to get to where you are. Embracing that to connect those that you’re for and repelling those you’re not for is what intentional branding is all about.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.garett.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/garett
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/garett
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garett/
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/garettcreative
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqyNL2QxOtzf9Z1fykmpvOQ
Image Credits
Garett Southerton