B
ased in Los Angeles and
specialising in branding, print
collateral, packaging and
interactive design, Kati Forner Design
is known for its minimalist, thoughtfully
elegant work for beauty, fashion and
lifestyle brands.
It was founded five years ago by Kati
Forner, after she’d spent almost a decade in
Chicago working with a string of innovative
design agencies. Here she discusses the
challenges of jumping in at the deep end,
finding the right freelancers, and making
her business a success....After 12 years working at agencies, you
decided in 2015 to move from Chicago to
Los Angeles and launch your own studio.
How long had you been planning this, and
what led you to take the plunge?
Katie Forner: It was actually a pretty
spontaneous decision for me. I’d play around
with the idea every once in a while, but it
definitely wasn’t a set plan.
I was working at a small studio and the
work environment and management style
was pretty toxic. One day I said, “Enough is
enough,” and decided it was time for me to
do my own thing... with zero clients lined up.
It was quite the hustle trying to bring in work
the first year. I don’t think I’d recommend
going this route, but I’m more than grateful
that I made the decision when I did.And founding a studio isn’t the same as just
working as a freelancer, right?
Correct. I think a lot of clients approach
us thinking I’m a one-woman shop or a
freelance designer who works on a couple
of projects at a time. But although I’m the
only owner and do work on some of our
smaller projects on my own, I have a team
of freelancers involved on most of our
projects. We typically work on between
20 and 30 projects at a time.
I love collaborating, especially with
like-minded creatives, but finding the right
creatives can be tricky. I’m lucky enough
to work with super-talented designers
and writers, all over the world; one of my
favourite designers to collaborate with is in
Australia. That’s probably the most enjoyable
aspect of my job.On the other hand, it’s a lot of work...
Yes, it’s been five years since I started my
own thing and I’m just starting to get the
whole work-life balance thing under control.
Having my first child this year has helped
me prioritise. But even though it’s a lot more
work, it’s more than worth it.
I’m lucky enough to be at a place where
I only take on the projects that really
resonate with us, and that we’re passionate
about. I think this reflects in the work we
produce. I wake up every day excited to go
to work, and it’s not lost on me how
fortunate I am to be in that situation.Can you describe how you typically
approach a new project?
We get a variety of projects in different
industries, so our approach depends on
the needs and scope of the project. I have
a scalable studio model, so I’m always the
lead and main creative director, and I have
an arsenal of super-talented designers,
copywriters, strategists, project managers
and developers. Depending on the scope of
the project, I then build out my dream team.
That’s typically the first step once a project is
signed off on. This flexible model has worked
very well for us.Is there a style or aesthetic to your work
that makes it recognisably yours?
Well, I think all of our work is rooted in
minimalism and a less-is-more approach.
However, we always add a layer of the
unexpected. I’d also like to think there’s
a refinement to our work that makes it
recognisably ours.In general, what kind of clients do you
prefer to work with?
Trusting clients. It always baffles me when
someone hires us and micromanages
every aspect of the design process. Luckily,
this doesn’t happen often. It should be no
surprise that the most successful projects are
with clients who are the most trusting.You recently helped with the launch
of Solviva, a new chain of wellness
restaurants. What did that involve?
We were approached by Solviva to do its
branding, packaging suite as well as theSTUDIO PROFILE
“I’M LUCKY
ENOUGH TO BE AT
A PLACE WHERE
I ONLY TAKE ON
THE PROJECTS
THAT RESONATE
WITH US”TOP
Branding and packaging
for Simple Goods.
BELOW
Branding and packaging
for Wilding.- 88 -