Forge Edition 1: In Conversation with NADYA VALISH

Nadya Valish specialises in bespoke, effective brand strategy and design, employing a human, holistic, detail-focused approach. Collaborating one-on-one with clients to create tailored branding that definitively represents their business to their target audience, they value creativity, simplicity, quality – and know that integrity and collaboration are the starting points.

We sat down with its director, Nadya Quintanilla, who is currently a participant on the first edition of Forge.

Tell us a bit about your business. 

NADYA VALISH® is a brand strategy and design company, I set it up after years of experience working with small and large businesses. We specialise in branding, from the foundation to the positioning , and implementation. This is fundamental as the brand of a business is present everywhere, and will make the difference between choosing one company over another. Our approach is straightforward and goal oriented.
Our clients are experts at their business, we are great at listening and understanding their business needs, we offer expert diagnostic guidance and implementation and work together as partners.

What made you go into this creative industry?

After finishing university I started to work in-house in a company, as a designer, I absolutely love my work and over time got more and more involved. This quickly ascended to me being the head of the design department to which I oversaw the two sister companies’ branding. During this time I also developed some in-house training for the sales department. I aimed to study a masters but unfortunately have very limited time to do this. I have always wanted to own and run my own business and realised there was nothing stopping me. The next thing I know I started to freelance  and also studied a Masters in project management specialised in product and innovation.

Over time I have gained more knowledge and experience , moving into a strategic role, that still combines creativity but is focused on goals and results to clients.

What are the pitfalls and benefits of running your own creative business?

Definitely one of the benefits of running your own company is the flexibility to decide with who to work and what projects to take on, also working independently has allowed me to work with clients around the world. The pitfalls are that sometimes you wish to have more hours in the day, or that you can clone yourself,  there is so much that can be done.

How long have you been a Walthamstow resident?

I  moved to Walthamstow in October 2015.

There seems to be a real community feel amongst the area’s creatives, why do you think that is?

There is a huge sense of community, I think this has come from wanting to share what you know with others, it helps everyone because by sharing our expertise and experiences we become stronger together.  We are definitely open to collaborations, I very much enjoy doing webinars, delivering talks and workshops.

 

Connect with NADYA VALISH®

Official website
Twitter 
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