My pronouns are he/him

I founded Supercool in 2004, during the final year of my graphic design degree course.

I didn't do A Levels, instead after leaving school I went straight into a National Diploma course, with a pathway that led to a degree at Birmingham Institute of Arts & Design. Starting an agency during my degree allowed me to be selective about the sort of projects I worked on.

So, right from the start of my career I worked with artists, galleries, and theatres. Initially on things like exhibition postcards, flyers, and brochures. In the early days, I also designed interior design magazines, brands for construction and waste management companies, and promotional material for a local coffee shop.

Over the first 10 years of Supercool, as I worked with more people and began branching out from print into web design, our reputation grew, and we were able to fully specialise in the arts and cultural sector.

When I first started designing for the web – with fewer tools than are around now – creating distinctive design was a large part of the challenge. Now the web has matured, the challenges have changed – with the introduction of responsive design, and a much greater focus on performance, accessibility, and usability.

As Supercool has become more digitally-focussed, my role has changed. I now work even more closely with clients, helping them to identify challenges; then resolve them with great-looking, highly-functional solutions.

Email James