Personal and Professional Practice

http://www.spectator.co.uk/arts/arts-feature/9252541/quentin-blake-finds-a-way-to-avoid-forging-his-own-work/

I have fallen in love once more with Quentin Blake's illustrations since starting my Save the Children 'Read on Get on' project. His work is full of emotion and humor and his use of watercolour and line conveys this perfectly. On his website he tells the audience how he never uses any images as inspiration; his studio walls white. He lets his imagination create the image. This is something I really like as I often fall into the trap of relying too heavily on visual research even though I love drawing from my imagination.

This article bought my attention to http://www.houseofillustration.org.uk/
Which is somewhere I now will go and visit - hopefully I can do this over the Christmas break.

I have also made a Pinterest board with some of my favorite illustrations of his, linked below.

http://uk.pinterest.com/dearalice1/quentin-blake/

Working in smal groups (no more than 4) you will construct a business proposal for a creative studio, collective or collaborative practice and present it to your peers and tutors in an formatively assessed, oral presentation.

Four heads are better than one as long as they communicate. You will now have the luxury of four pairs of hands. How will you use them effectively? You will need to consider the following:

What skills and services do you have to offer?
Who is your target market?
Who is your competition and how will you compete?
What are your costs, charges and financial considerations?
How will you structure your studio?
Who will be responsible for what?
How will you promote your services? To who? Using what media?

You must make reference to the module resources materials, books and web sites to demonstrate your understanding of basic marketing and business principles.

We live in a capitalist free market economy which means that ...

Regeneration areas are being made into cafes and galleries.

The culture sector.

We were thinking about how we could create a product with a USP - unique selling point. We decided that personalized products would be a great USP as everyone likes to feel special or make the person they buy the present for feel special. Things with names and photographs etc. We have skills in drawing and being creative so to mark ourselves out from the rest of the suppliers out there we must draw on these skills specifically.

PEST

Political factors

Economic factors

Social factors

Technological factors

4 P's

Place

Production

Price

Product

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

Weaknesses

Opportunities?

Threats?

RESEARCH into STATIONARY
I decided to investigate stationary design and in particular creative and prize winning stationary design...

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/gallery/2013/apr/23/the-best-stationery-in-pictures

My thoughts:

http://www.independent.co.uk/extras/indybest/gadgets-tech/the-50-best-stationery-1861928.html?action=gallery&ino=10

My thoughts:

http://www.notonthehighstreet.com/home/traditional-stationery-gifts

My thoughts:

http://www.thejournalshop.com/

My thoughts:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Best-Sellers-Office-Products-Stationery-Supplies/zgbs/officeproduct/192413031

My thoughts:

http://www.shopikon.com/london/shopping-guide/other/stationery

My thoughts:

http://www.realsimple.com/home-organizing/personal-stationery

My thoughts:

http://www.vanityfair.com/style/carls-crush/2012/06/six-noteworthy-brands-stationery

My thoughts:

http://www.penandpaper.co.uk/

My thoughts:

http://www.vogue.com/872536/best-thank-you-stationery/

My thoughts:

http://www.timeout.com/newyork/shopping/best-stationery-stores-in-new-york-city

My thoughts:

http://www.paperchase.co.uk/stationery/notebooks

My thoughts:

http://blog.spoongraphics.co.uk/articles/40-must-see-stationery-designs-for-print-inspiration

My thoughts:

http://lovelystationery.com/

My thoughts:

http://monocle.com/shop/stationery/

My thoughts:

http://graphicdesignjunction.com/2014/02/branding-visual-identity-stationery-designs/

My thoughts: Branding will be a huge part of this task. A-Three as a brand needs to be perfectly designed towards our target audience and fulfill their needs. The branding in the examples above show how it can create a presence by making your stationary part of a set and this also helps to make more profit as people want a complete set, all matching.

IDEAS

Could create personalised note books? Accessories etc

A few websites that I think link into the style we're going for with our company:

http://presentandcorrect.com/category.php?category_id=2

http://www.quilllondon.com/writing-pens-pencils.html

http://www.zarawood.com/thewoodyshop/all

http://shop.anorakmagazine.com/products

They all have that hand crafted quality and aesthetics are a huge part of the marketing of their products; they go for gift quality rather than just functional.

I will be SWOT analysing Paperblanks company.

Their website: http://www.paperblanks.com/us/en/product/5/full

'Keeping You On Schedule and In Style'

Aim: to work individually on my group proposal by looking at PEST analysis and the 4 P's;

look at how they link to proposal and competition. Identify my competition... what are their strengths/weaknesses? What opportunities have they taken? What threats do they face? Are they local/regional/national/international?

SWOT Analysis

Strengths

Beautifully designed notebook/journals.
Individual and creative pattens.
Highly detailed and good quality materials - you get your moneys worth.
A visually appealing functional gift.
Contains:
National and international holidays & celebrations summary for 2015
International dialling codes
Clothing sizes, measurements, and temperature conversion tables
World time zone chart
Travel planning memo page
Birthdays and important dates memo page
Extra note pages
Year planner for 2016
Holidays & celebrations for 2016
Convenient, removable address book insert
Eco-Friendly
Philanthropy a core part of the company ethos.

Weaknesses

Not a really easy purchase as it's cheaper to just get a plain notebook
Won't appeal to all audiences: not many macho covers so may not appeal to the male demographic or for professional uses - may want more simple/subtle designs.

Opportunities?

'Celebrate human artistry and craft' -Statement on their twitter page. They have taken up the opportunity in a digital age to appeal to the public who want something more personal and carefully made. This gives the appearance that it is a more quality product as it has taken more time and effort to make; the audience thinks they last longer.
Also the audience feels like they are supporting the arts and creativity in society by not going with the mass produced plain products of this type.
Less people buy stationary for function as the digital age means that more people are using their keypads to type up emails/work/letters etc. This means that more people are buying stationary as a gift product, Paperblanks have taken this opportunity to put care into making a product that will appeal to people buying gifts as it ticks both functional and visually beautiful/carefully made/quality product.
They have taken up the opportunity to make their company eco friendly during a period of time when buyers take into account their global footprint, often willing to pay more for a more eco friendly product as they feel like they are helping this global issue. - 'Philanthropy has always been a core part of the Paperblanks® company ethos. Every year, Paperblanks® and its publisher, Hartley & Marks, contribute to a diverse range of programs and agencies that each, in their own way, help improve our planet. In addition to financial support, we donate thousands of journals to dozens of causes and groups every year.'

Threats?

Less people are buying stationary thanks to the digital programmes that allow us to type up our work etc.
Digital products can be made on mass much more easily and cheaply.
People will only buy these sorts of gifts on occasion. They are not necessary.