AbsoluteB.com

It’s been an insane 2 weeks! Since coming onboard with Bonobos, the amount of work has never pilled on as much as it has in the past 14 days.

To start off with, I’ve lately inherited the responsibilities for everything to do with phonebook ads. Everything from their design to their final distribution and communication with the sales department. Besides creating SEO strong and beautiful websites, Bonobos also creates phonebook ads for its clients. Don’t laugh too hard, I chuckled a little too when I thought that there were still people out there who even own a phonebook. But despite the fact that it Is a diminishing market, it remains profitable to be a part of. Despite this, you wouldn’t believe how many badly designed phonebook ads are out there! I think it has a lot to do with companies designing their own ads in MS Paint rather than hiring on a professional design firm to get the most attention necessary out of an ad. Many of the ads cram too much uninteresting information into them and don’t get a clear message across, next to the fact that they’re just really ugly! Not that I care what other companies decide to do with their designs. It just makes my job that much easier, as long as the client doesn’t butt in too much. …read the rest of this entry »

It’s been about a month since I last posted and that’s mostly to do with the fact that I started working at Bonobos so any and all my time has been spent on their projects and on learning and integrating myself into their work flow as much as possible. Not just that, but also looking for ways to streamline the various processes. So far I’ve been more than happy to be part of the organization and being able to work in such a young and dynamic environment. I’ve slowly gotten to know my new colleagues better and they’ve been great in allowing me to feel a part of the team. Since moving into the new building, I’ve definitely been able to work on some great and fun projects; from designing sites to logos and functional widgets and elements. …read the rest of this entry »

From the initial contact to the moment we came to an agreement, it all happened very quickly. I received a message via AbsoluteB, completely out of the blue, expressing interest in my possibly joining Bonobos as a designer/developer. Barely a week later, having had a few conversations and giving the offer some thought, I have initialed, dated and signed my contract to develop and design for Groningen based marketing and media company Bonobos. Ok, so I don’t officially start till next month, but I’m already excited about getting started and am really looking forward to bringing and sharing my ideas in the hope of reaching higher levels of success!

I consider myself to be a versatile and flexible designer. Given the opportunity, I love designing from scratch and being allowed to create what I believe to be the most suitable, functional and most beautiful solution possible. On the other hand, I equally enjoy the challenge of taking strict project specifications and requirements and translating them into a product that a client and look at, experience and touch. I’ve been fortunate to have been able to work on both ends of the spectrum. While I had plenty of freedom designing for clients within NASCAR and Volvo Cars, I have had to follow strict guidelines while designing for clients including the Dutch Ministry of Justice and various Dutch municipal organizations. So when I’m asked about my style of design, I tend to find it difficult to convince people that I don’t really have a main style. Yesterday during my long drive back to Groningen from Den Haag, I gave this element of my skill base a lot of thought. …read the rest of this entry »

AbsoluteB, in laymen’s terms, is all about me. It’s design was aimed purely at getting the answers out there to the question “who is Barry?”. But “who is Barry” can go two ways. On the one hand, I want to convey myself professionally; my work, my projects, my experimentation in design and development methods and techniques. AbsoluteB is that something that will be the initial proof of my abilities before I even get started; my foot through the door so to speak.

And then of course, there’s the other side of me; the person who’s a complete Volvo and automotive enthusiast (read nutcase), the person who’s addicted to Salsa (the dance not the chip dip), the person who has a strong passion for graphic design, the person who has only John Mayer songs in the top 20 of his iTunes most played playlist. Because lets be honest, these personal topics have as much influence on my work and my professional side as anything else. These are the things that inspire me and move me, at and away from work. This is the person, and these are the topics I want to share and get out there as well when asked “who is Barry”. …read the rest of this entry »