Design Advisers

I work with ambitious and innovative businesses to help them to grow and achieve economic, environmental and social sustainability. My role, as Design Adviser, is to get to know a business: to be clear about its aspirations and resources, products and services, markets and end users. I then ask: "What can we re-design to best serve these markets and end users and to achieve the business aspirations – making best use of resources and maximising the opportunities available?" This will lead to a design brief, which might be brand or communications focused, but may involve redesigning a product or service, the business environment or company culture. After working in design for 25 years, and running my own successful design partnership, my aim is to help businesses to succeed using all of the knowledge I have accumulated.

Following stints at Wolff Olins and other London agencies, I went on to become a Senior Lecturer at University College Falmouth and co-owner of one of the South West’s leading design agencies. I have more than twenty years’ experience in brand development, design management and marketing communications. My experience includes, writing identity manuals for Thorn EMI, developing the unique visual brand for the Eden Project, and repositioning Pendennis Superyachts as a global leader. I have worked in a wide range of sectors, including: technology, marine industries, professional services, food and drink, the environment, renewable energy, heritage and tourism, health, regeneration and education. As well as working for The Design Programme, I am an independent brand, design and communication consultant.

I am a Fellow of the Chartered Society of Designers, a past Chair of the South West Design Forum, and a member of the Institute of Directors.

"Job satisfaction is seeing a client achieve more sales, better margins, happier customers and staff, and a more sustainable business – using design and marketing as the tool."

My fascination with packaging started in the 1966 world cup when I celebrated England’s win with an orange flavoured ice cream packaged in the shape of a football. This fascination continues as I help companies vastly increase their sales through the magic of distinctive packaging.

As a structural packaging specialist I have been given me the opportunity to work with many of the leading businesses and the biggest brands in the world. I believe that great packaging needs to be simple, cost effective, sustainable and innovative.

Alongside the Design Programme I am able to share my experience with smaller businesses enabling them to compete in an ever more competitive market  place.

I am joint owner and Creative Director of a.m. associates  - the successful structural packaging and new product development agency with a strong emphasis on environmental design. We work in many product sectors including cosmetics, toiletries, perfumes, automotive, toys, consumer goods and food products. Our pack designs are based on our ethos of maximum protection/minimal materials - which fits hand in glove with environmental best practice.

I trained in product and related furniture design at Kingston Polytechnic before gaining my spurs working for major design consultancies such as Conran Associates, Addison, Roberts Weaver, Newell and Sorrell and Interbrand. I formed am associates in 1992 with husband and partner Stephen Aldridge.

In addition to my consultancy work I have taught Packaging Design and Environmental Packaging at The Royal College of Art, Imperial College, Hertfordshire University, Kingston University, University of the Creative Arts in Farnham and Rochester, Brunel University and taken Masterclasses in Packaging Design at Sussex University.

I also run Environmental Workshops for designers discussing materials and best practice. Businesses large and small benefit from a.m. associates’ unique and all encompassing view of packaging and are able to implement improvements gleaned from the advice given in my talks.

Stephen and I published our Environmental Packaging Guidelines for designers, specifiers and brand managers in Spring 2008 and our first book – “Why Shrink-wrap a Cucumber ? – a complete guide to environmental packaging  ” has just been published globally by Laurence King.

Design management, product development and the protection and conveyancing of intellectual property rights are James’ areas of expertise.

His experience takes in senior marketing roles as well as 10 years as a specialist adviser in design management. He specialises in manufacturing, technology and sustainability.

My passion is to bring the power of creative design to support the potential of innovative technology and so create successful businesses. This stems from a technology background where I have seen time and again that design can make the difference between a good product and a great one, a compelling service and a worthy one, or a successful business and an also-ran. Design is not something that can be simply bolted on at the end: design thinking is best when it has been embraced from the beginning. And yet the very different approach and priorities of business leaders, engineers and technologists and designers can make this potent mix confusing or even explosive if not managed effectively.

Over the last 30 years I have developed a strong track record in leading technology innovation teams, in small and large businesses across the world. During the last 15 years, my work as a Director with Hewlett Packard has seen me creating and managing organisations developing cutting-edge technologies with global research teams in digital media, media technologies and pervasive computing. The best work was always resulted from balancing the technology innovation with user-focused design thinking.

More recently I have been also focusing on my other deep interest in sustainability and where business and technology can have a substantive impact. With small start-up technology businesses, getting that thinking in early can make a huge difference in the sustainable nature of the solution, for little or no cost.

“The recent Innovate programme saw us work closely over one year with eleven technology start-up businesses across the South West. The result has been some exceptional businesses being helped to be better focused and more robust with the promise of becoming global successes.”

Holder of numerous industry awards, including the Masters Medal from the Faculty of Royal Designers for Industry and a Queens Award, Gavin designed best selling products for Habitat Design UK before joining Virgin Atlantic as a Design Manager.

He now mentors on the creative industry ‘flying start’ programme for the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship and has recently begun manufacturing his own products

For over thirty years I’ve worked in, and with, small and medium-sized companies in many sectors both in the UK and the US, as a designer, design manager, adviser and consultant.  In addition I’ve been a director of several companies.

Design thinking and design strategy play a large part in my work.  As a design adviser I help business owners and managers innovate and create well-designed products, services, communications, environments and brands… that people love, that reduce environmental impact and that provide organisational success.

My love of good design started as a commercial silk screen artist for a manufacturer of hard-backed books, as an assistant and stylist to a commercial photographer and in a stint at an offset lithography and letterpress printing company.  This led to a degree in Visual Communications & Design and a life-long exploration of how and why things are designed the way they are, and how they could be much better.

Although my areas of expertise are branding and corporate identity, marketing communications and graphic design, I keep abreast of the many different design specialisms.  I run workshops and sit on judging panels on innovation and design awards.  I’m also involved with the development of design practice through universities and design fora.

I am a Fellow of the RSA, a Member of the Packaging Society, on the boards of Design SW and Designed in Devon and a Design Associate at the Design Council.

When asked what design is, I defer to Charles Eames when he was asked, “What are the boundaries of design?”  He replied, “What are the boundaries of problems?”  And to Saul Bass’ definition of design, “Design is thinking made visual”.

My own take is “Design is a powerful tool.  It’s not just the fluffy stuff, or the ‘making it pretty’ at the end.  Design can create demand for a company's products and services that can't be created in any other way.”

 My favourite joke:  Two designers walk into a bar, the third one raises it.

With a background in international award-winning consultancy and well as in-house design management with a global materials science businesses, Ian enjoys helping to create exciting new products, brands and services.

Ian specialises in consumer, bio-science and technology markets.

I am a passionate and enthusiastic "business green" and I work with organisations to realise the potential twin aims of improving sustainability and reducing costs. Resource efficiency and environmental improvement is inextricably linked with business growth and profitability. A lean, well run organisation will sell more products with a better eco and financial margin. I have worked with global organisations to assist in designing out waste from products, supply chains and businesses as a whole. As well as being a consultant I also help run a family business. This understanding of the challenges of SME's ensures my advice is both practical and applicable for smaller organisations.

I am an environmental professional by training but am very business focussed. Since 1999, I have provided expert advice on sustainable supply chain strategy; Corporate Responsibility strategy and benchmarking; EU legislation compliance and planning; carbon footprinting & management; environmental management systems, biodiversity and resource efficiency. Before my current role, I worked at Giraffe Innovation advising businesses as diverse as J Sainsbury; Virgin Atlantic; Glaxo Smithkline; and Mulberry; plus countless SME's and Government organisations. I have advised Government on the implementation of Environmental legislation and advised business on cost effective compliance of the same. I take a hands on approach to design out inefficiency and help organisations realise their potential to use the environment as a driver to become more lean or launch sustainable products. In almost every circumstance, the greenest route is the most cost effective route and having a well implemented responsibility strategy has the added benefits of improving staff retention and supporting the brand. Prior to 2005 I worked at Valpak Ltd, a leading European compliance organisation which has given me a foundation of knowledge in UK/EU environmental legislation (and EU process) as well as waste management/recycling. Even now, it still surprises me how many organisations still don't have a waste minimisation strategy which drives cost out of the business.

I am passionate about identifying problems and providing practical solutions, as clients will attest. “We knew we wanted to continue to pack using recyclable cardboard,” said SinoScan’s Ian Matthews-Golledge.  “But we didn’t know how to restructure that packaging to be more effective.  Our consultant, James Dorrell, was quickly able to assess the situation and solve our problem.  We gave him a full kit, consisting of over 38 parts, in its original  packaging. We knew we wanted to continue to pack using recyclable packaging.  Just two weeks later he returned with a working prototype”.  “As soon as I saw the original packaging it was clear it did not meet the Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations  which require all companies to minimise packing weight and volume,” said James.  “Importantly for SinoScan it was also  obvious that considerable savings could be made by a simple repackaging design.