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

Hope, appreciate you joining us today. How do you think about vacations as a business owner? Do you take them and if so, how? If you don’t, why not?

This has been quite a journey for me. When I first started my business I found it very hard to step away from my work. Assuming clients would get frustrated, I would loose work, I would fall behind. I found out this was not the case once I had to reluctantly take some time off after being ill and getting to the point of burn out. I worked long silly hours which leaked into my weekends and my work started to become something I resented and didn’t enjoy. Design is my life, it is everything to me, so for me to have lost that passion made it clear there was something I needed to do to adjust my work life balance.

Since then I have ensured I have taken some time out and that guilty feeling of taking time off for me is getting better. It is still a journey I am on but I have found that clients do not get frustrated, I do not loose work and my perception of ‘falling behind’ is a made up concern as the pace I am going now is a suitable pace that works for me and my life.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

At designfulhope I believe design is the fundamental tool for helping brands connect and communicate effectively to their customers. It is my passion to take concepts, ideas, and emotion and translate them into memorable and captivating visual experiences with every single project I take on.

With years of experience, I have gathered a whole range of consumer insight which I use to create and solve any creative issue that comes my way. That might be wanting a consumer to buy your product, fall in love with your brand, or be engaged in the moment.

I offer services such as logo & branding design development, packaging design, website design and lastly all things graphic design from print to digital.

I am super passionate about helping small business dreams come to reality. I work mostly with start-ups bringing there brand to life or small business who are at the point of needing a refresh. I always ensure I connect with the client before any work starts to ensure we are a great fit and to ease any concerns they may have. I believe connecting with each client on a personal level very key as it only helps with developing their brand.

I offer brand strategy sessions which is key to any brands journey. You can think of brand strategy as the blueprint for how you want the world to see your business. Brand strategy is a critical and foundational piece for building a successful brand. It’s one of the areas that most businesses overlook because they jump right into the design and marketing.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Simply referrals. I work with good people and good people always recommend good connections. I have very grateful to work with such wonderful clients who are happy to pass on my name.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Seeing a brand become successful. Seeing a brand release in new stores with the packaging I developed for them. Seeing someone walking along the street/picking up my packaging up in store I created is so fulfilling.

I know I have done my job right when the brand is expanding and growing and I see it various locations.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.designfulhope.com/
• Instagram: @designfulhope
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hope-aylen-designfulhope