We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Mike Shishkin. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Mike below.

Mike, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

I used to run a successful agency in Russia. We worked with top brands, grew 40% year over year — everything was going well. But I wanted something else — to be relevant globally.

In 2020, I moved to Barcelona. It felt like the right place: international, creative, close to the UK, the U.S. and the rest of Europe. I saw it as a future HQ for building a global business.

Then the war started. Russia invaded Ukraine. Sanctions hit. Companies began leaving the market.

We had to decide what to do. On a personal level, it was painful. I had friends in Kyiv, had given talks there. On a professional level — yes, there would be opportunities in Russia. Local brands, quick branding, new market needs. But that wasn’t the direction we wanted to grow in. We didn’t want to build expertise that would only be relevant locally.

So we took the risk — and shut down our business in Russia. Five new client requests per week. Full pipeline. And we closed the door. Back to zero.

In March 2022, we started again. Same team. New company.

That’s how Kidults agency (https://wearekidults.com/) started.

Mike, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

how you got into your industry / business / discipline
I graduated as an ancient historian. The options were: go into academia or do something else. Besides history, I had another passion — photography and design. Design felt more practical, more future-proof. So I gave it a try.

Got a job as a designer at a magazine. But after a while, I realized I wasn’t just interested in design — I wanted to build something of my own. So I came up with a plan to build a design studio.

At first, it was all virtual. Full-time job during the day, freelance projects at night. Slowly freelance grew. Until in 2009, my manager gave me a choice: promotion — but no side gigs.

I chose the studio.

It was just me and a used iMac back then. And it wasn’t the best moment to start a business — late 2008, mid-crisis and my son was one year old.

But something about it felt right.

That’s how the studio started. First small clients came through word of mouth — bars, restaurants, flyer design. And then, step by step, it grew.
Over the next 13 years, we went from local print work to branding for some of the biggest companies in Russia.

what type of products/services/creative works you provide
My current project Kidults agency specializes in brand strategy, identity, product, web & communication design. In spare time we launch start-ups (https://flipscards.com/ + https://teamcheck.online/en), build communities and organize design conferences (https://www.letsdefine.io/).

what problems you solve for your clients and/or what you think sets you apart from others
When we started a new agency in Barcelona in 2022, we had to introduce ourselves from scratch — this time to a global market with big competition but also big opportunities.

And we quickly realized that we need to pick a niche. Everyone said it and they were right.

For example, we didn’t get to work on one project because the client chose an agency focused exclusively on early-stage health tech startups in the UK (that’s a niche!).

My learning is: if you’re the best in the world at one thing, there will be enough clients. But on the other hand we didn’t want to go too narrow. That felt very boring and risky — all eggs in one basket. Also, if the work doesn’t excite us, we end up doing it at good level but not the best.

So we kept looking. What’s our edge?

Not just on the surface — but in the DNA of our team. That’s what we do with our clients as well.

And we found it – we understand startups. During Covid I launched two of my own — and that experience changed how I see branding, product and growth.

That’s where we decided to go deeper and picked that focus.

Now inside Kidults agency there’s our own startup studio that has two goals:

— understand how business works from the inside

— show by example why we’re good at what we do

In this lab, we have two types of projects: some we launch ourselves and some come from founders we believe in (we join them as partners and work for equity).

It’s not just design, it’s a strategy for long-term growth.

What are you most proud of
That we pulled the band-aid off when it mattered (closed agency in Russia and opened a new one in Barcelona). We took a financial hit. But we stayed true to our principles, kept the core team — and made a move in the direction we actually want to grow.

what are the main things you want potential clients/followers/fans to know about you/your brand/your work/ etc.
Probably why am I still doing this after all these years. And still enjoying it.

I was watching “Knives Out” recently — a film that breaks down the detective genre while playing with it. And I realized: every client project is like a detective case.

The killer is in the house, there’s a problem and the solution exists — but no one’s found it yet. That’s the fun part. That’s what keeps it interesting.

When we were naming our new agency (Kidults), we looked at ourselves — and at our clients.

There’s a bit of provocation in the name. But it fits to us perfectly.

We and the people we work with are the kind of team who can build big business without losing the spark. Still curious. Still ready to challenge the norm.

That’s who Kidults is for. And who it’s built by.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

In 2022 we faced a major turning point. We had just started building a new company in Barcelona when the war in Russia broke out.

So we made the decision to shut down our business in Russia. We stopped all client work — even though we were still getting leads.

It was a reset, financially risky and very challenging for the team. But it felt right.

We didn’t just change locations. We changed direction. Same core team, new company, new name — and a much clearer vision.

That’s how Kidults agency started.

Since then, we’ve grown by sticking to what we believe in — and building something we actually want to run long-term.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

When you work in a global market, the rules change. You can pick a super narrow niche and still succeed, if you’re the best in the world at it. But if you’re just “pretty good” — it’s not enough.

Back in Russia, we could just do great work and be ourselves. That worked. But in a new market, being “good” isn’t a strategy.

You need clear positioning and you need to know *what* you do better than anyone — and say it out loud.

Just doing your job well won’t get you noticed.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://wearekidults.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikeshishkin/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikeshishkin
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeshishkin/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wearekidults
• Other: Kidults links:
  https://www.linkedin.com/company/kidults
  https://www.instagram.com/weare_kidults/