Richard Colvill, Creative Director at Agency TK, takes us through a week in his working life. To suggest another senior media or creative figure for A Week In My Life, please email david@prolificnorth.co.uk.
Monday
After a busy but brilliant weekend filled with plenty of sunshine and fun with friends and family, I really struggled when the alarm went off this morning at the usual time of 6.45 and so I smashed the snooze button about six times.
After dropping the kids to school, I was in and ready to gather my creative team for the morning huddle, and pre-production meeting where we run through everyone’s jobs and get them fired up for the day ahead. This is part of our daily routine and is the best way to get everyone going.
With everyone set, I prepare myself for an interesting meeting with a new client. He arrives… I didn’t think he would be THIS interesting, we love edgy and this potential client is very willing to push a few creative boundaries. Covered in tattoos including his face, I have a feeling we are going to work really well together and I can’t wait to kick the project off.
During the meeting he came out with some surprising and inspirational quotes – unaware that I was taking note of these beauties for future use. My favourite was: “I’m a family man, that’s all I want to be known for, anything else is a waste of my time, but it is a necessity to be able to spend time with them”.
It’s sweltering in the office and so after lunch I decide we need to come up with a different way each day to keep the team cool and motivated at the same time. We decide to start the week with ice creams and football on the big screens. After picking Mexico in the sweepstake, I’m chuffed to bits that it’s Mexico & Brazil and I watch them battle it out on the pitch with fingers crossed.
At 5:15pm we pull the entire agency together for our weekly company update – another TK ritual which allows us to inform all three of our offices in Leeds, London and LA of the week ahead.
My day ends at 5.30 today and I venture out to the workshop where my new/old car has been delivered. I’ve bought an AC Cobra project car so this is the first time I have seen it in the flesh. This car will no doubt take up a ton time and energy but it’s fulfilled a dream – I have wanted to own one since I watched my dad build one when I was a kid!
Tuesday
A great design huddle today with the team starts my day, swiftly followed by a meeting with a new client. They’re a really interesting electronics brand and we have now officially been appointed as the lead agency for the company which produces sound systems. I can’t wait to get started – we will be rolling out a new brand and packaging.
We are currently in the process of restructuring and re-positioning the agency, so I spent some time today working on the final touches for the new TK brand deck. I tentatively presented it back to the rest of the board and they all loved it. We’ve come a really long way in the last 18 years and it’s time for a completely new look and feel, taking us back to where we started and focusing on our core creative strengths.
By mid afternoon I feel like I am drowning in a sea of emails – so much to get through but the sun is shining and so I make the decision to leave on time and watch the England Vs Columbia match with fingers crossed and encourage the rest of the team to do so too.
Wednesday
Wednesday rolls around and starts with the usual huddle. Everyone is in great spirits following the England win last night and so I take the opportunity to deliver more good news and tell them all that that the new TK look and feel has been approved by the board, which goes down really well. Then I have to break the news that we’ve some late nights ahead….but everyone receives it well and is excited to get stuck in. The design crew is pivotal in driving through the new brand for the agency and we need to roll up our sleeves and roll out the deliverables.
By mid morning I’m in need of a coffee so nip to our local coffee shop, The Woods for a latte with oat milk and caramel top. When I get back to the office I have had a delivery, my new gadget, it’s officially the World’s smallest phone, only just bigger than SIM card. It’s so cool and would look great as a necklace!
Just before lunch we receive more good news, we have won another new client – a marble worktop company. I love interior design and so I am more than a little excited about this one.
At lunch time I walk past an outdoor boxing class – but for today I plan on being unhealthy and join a good friend in the Midnight Bell for some lunch and a drink in the sunshine to talk about some new venture opportunities.
This afternoon I took some time to immerse one of our newest team members in the TK way and new brand vision. I also spoke to her about the BLANK Publication that we run and how she can input into it moving forward.
A quick walk round and chat with each of the team individually helps me to chat to my designers about what they are working on and help offer guidance and inspire them where I can.
Then it’s time for a bit of fun – I enjoy a scoot about on the studio scooter and finish the day working on the Table Tennis table we have commissioned in the reception area. It’s made from solid steel and oak and will be painted matt black with the new branding implemented onto it.
Finally, we create a new standing meeting area in the office to help increase efficiency in meetings. This has been welcomed by everyone and in is in use already by the end of the day.
Thursday
Today I pitched the new company branding to the last board member and once again it was really well received and accepted. Now it really is time to bring it to life and get it rolled out asap.
Following this I stepped straight into an interview with an Art Director and was really impressed – they showed some lovely work and so we may progress with this candidate.
Just before lunch I took time to review a fly on the wall documentary style video of myself and Nik Entwistle our CEO that we’ve had filmed. We’re hoping to bring in an in-house content creator to purely promote the key people in the agency and this is the first step.
As I settled back at my desk I was coerced into going to MOD pizza for lunch, with eyes bigger than my belly I soon regretted ordering every possible topping…it may be a while before I can eat another pizza again.
The start of afternoon is spent organising my moodboard deck ready for a shoot tomorrow. It will be a fashion esq style but tongue in cheek.
I take a quick break and venture out see how my project cars are coming along and throw some direction at the metal work guys. The day is finished off with an interview in the pub. Best place to ease the nerves and show our agency culture. Great potential candidate too.
Friday
Finally Friday arrives, It feels like a long week and everyone seems tired from the heat and more than ready for the weekend but I manage to get them all fired up during the morning design huddle.
We meet with the marble client again and things are starting to progress on the planning front.
Manage to fit in a quick game of table tennis in against one of the boys from studio before heading off to the photography studio to art direct the new brand shots for TK’s new look and feel. Arty, fashion, cheeky and kitsch is the flavor of the day. I also spend some time reviewing the web designs for Agency TK’s new brand vision. I rifle through some pantone books looking at pastels and neons, feeling inspired…
Then it’s time to wrap up for the week and cruise out to the candle bar for some leaving drinks and food, to say goodbye to one of Account Management team.
It’s been a week of wins all round for both the agency and on the pitch so now it’s time to spend another weekend in the sun with my favourite people and hopefully see another victory for England!
