Mitch James
Teams
Work Experience
Working alongside the Owner/Founder and Head of Design, over almost two years our small team worked on a range of award-winning brand strategy and communications projects that continually surpassed expected business outcomes.
In my role I was responsible for managing a remote rolodex of 26 freelance visual designers, motion designers, 2D/3D illustrators, front-end developers and full-stack developers to deliver high execution levels across all development parameters of studio projects.
Awards include;
• Australian Graphic Design Association (AGDA) Awards, Distinction
• Sydney Design Awards, Gold
Examples include;
• Developing and scaling Bel Isi PNG, a safe house network throughout Papua New Guinea for victims and families experiencing sexual and domestic violence in collaboration with DFAT and the PNGAUS Partnership
• Rebranding and redirecting go-to-market for Netlinkz, formerly iWebGate, a world-leading secure Network-as-a-Service provider whose growth had severely stalled; over 14 months, we transformed their value prop to focus on the Asian continent, leading to a x6 increase in YOY ARR and multiple strategic partnerships throughout China
• Rebranding and developing human-centred communications for Aspect Group, formerly Mindful Employer, a specialist in workplace mental health solutions who were focused on the corporate sector. Having identified through research that the resource industry sector was in desperate need of organisational psychology, we developed a go-to-market plan that led to takeup throughout a number of Australia's largest resource sector organisations
Leveraging my network to undertake short-term opportunities as a vehicle for career growth, I was privileged to work in-house with teams in Sydney, Melbourne, Singapore, Shenzhen, Barcelona, Kentucky, Los Angeles, San Francisco and more across various branding, experiential and campaign project opportunities.
Orgs (in-house) include Pernod Ricard, Brown-Forman, Kirin Holdings, Capri Holdings Ltd, IBM, Salesforce, Adobe and OFFF Festival.
Agencies (consulting) include Jack Morton Worldwide; VML (formerly JWT); George P Johnson AU + NA; Publicis Groupe ANZ and WPP Group.
Between 2017-19 I managed the development and implementation of a closed social network app for RVers and Van Lifers in the United States.
Devising and actioning a comprehensive brand strategy as employee #1, I spent five months on the road, facilitating a network of influential storytellers, content creators and adventure enthusiasts under the #RV brand with a focus on leveraging user-generated content.
An impetus to show safe areas to stay and explore, tips and tricks for solving problems on the road, and raising cultural awareness with respect to all cultures while travelling across the US proved resonant with the identified target audience segmentation.
Growing a subscription-based subscriber model rapidly from beta through launch and GA, #RV became an industry leader utilising a combination of user insights, long-form editorial and spectacular media content.
Sustainably expanding the full-time team from 1 to 8 and managing an incentivised influencer affiliate program of 32 personalities, key strategic partnerships were developed with REI Co-Op and Camping World that led to vested interest from Good Sam Club, with an acquisition occurring seven months after launch as GSC folded the #RV brand under their internal content umbrella.
Working remotely with the Board and CEO on a rolling contract, Traders in Purple moved from a localised regional developer to one of Australia's leading mid-scale developers by refocusing their efforts on mixed-use precincts with higher ROI.
My responsibilities included developing a new brand and marketing strategy, sourcing external specialists to deliver on key strategic goals and implementing targeted campaigns to leverage the considerable business portfolio under the TiP banner, including;
Traders in Purple, Click Click Marketing, Purple Money, Private Money Australia, Accor Hotels, various mixed-use developments across NSW & QLD, and Margate Beach House.
Side Projects
Identifying a gap in the market of long-form content tailored for people who travel to eat and drink, I began Share Plate to work with tourism and SMEs and highlight stories of process across agribusiness, supply chain, hospitality and in-between through regional areas.
A quarterly print publication with each issue focused on a different regional area, after 18 months of strategic planning and brand development, we produced issues on the NSW South Coast, Northern Tasmania and Mornington Peninsula, VIC; sharing stories showcasing how food throughout Australia is tied to a sense of place and a sense of community.
With plans underway to then feature the Fleurieu Peninsula and South-West WA, the Covid pandemic forced closure of the business.
From 2010–2017, Ruby's Tuesday was a letterpress design studio working with clients in Australia, the US and the UK to design, produce and press hand-crafted wedding invitation suites. A notable achievement was being the first Australian stationery studio invited to participate and showcase at the National Stationery Show in 2014, held at the Javits Center in NYC, alongside contemoraries such as Jessica Hische, Rifle Paper Co, Studio on Fire, Hammerpress, NeuHaus and more.