IN order to find out more about the Sellick Creative, John Blake ventures out to the firm’s hill-top base to interview founder Steve Sellick.
John Blake: Good to meet you Steve, nice studio you have here and I love that bike on the wall, I’ve never seen anything so bright.
Steve Sellick: Thanks John, yes definitely on the loud side. I had it painted in Interceptor Green after one of my favourite toys as a kid; a Dinky spacecraft from Gerry Anderson’s TV series UFO.
JB: Gosh that makes you quite old, they ran that in the 70s!
SS: That’s a little below the belt, and sort of true, but I’m young at heart – it helps me keep on the pulse of things, of what is current and relevant.
JB: I see from my notes that you’ve been in the creative business for 30 years, for some pretty impressive names including BP, Mercedes-Benz, Next, Homebase, Whitbread and Novacroft. You must have worked on some interesting stuff?
SS: Yes, it’s what I love about this job – one day I’m thinking how I’m going to engage an audience to buy a jet washer and the next I’m trying to make a fake ice cream look appetising. I’ve worked on campaigns across radio, TV, out-of-home advertising, digital and print. Additionally I’m regularly involved in packaging design and currently working on a retail environment project. What really fires me up is creating original brand stories that resonate with my clients’ customers.
JB: Now we all love a good story but you wouldn’t want 50 Shades of Grey to land in Goldilocks porridge bowl!
SS: John, this is where my creative strategic direction can help clients deliver their messages across the right channels in a way is relative and important to their customers.
JB: So where do you get your inspiration from?
SS: Certainly when I’m on the bike; whether indoors or on a spin out to the Cotswolds, if design is my metier then cycling is my raison d’etre.
JB: Very profound and French.
SS: Mange tout, Rodney, mange tout!
JB: That tees me up nicely for my next question, who would be your fantasy dinner date?
SS: Not obvious, but I think Dan Snow. I love history and what I think it can teach you – I only wished more politicians studied it.
JB: I see that you are holding a book – A Smile In The Mind – is that a favourite?
SS: It’s one of them; certainly I think it illustrates how you can be sensitive and witty through clever thought processes. Something I really want to convey in my work – it gives a human touch. The novel that has influenced me the most is To Kill A Mockingbird, there’s a passage in there where the main character Scout is told to always put herself in someone else’s shoes, to see the world from their perspective. I think this viewpoint really helps deliver better communications.
JB: Okay so I’m a newshound, what animal would you be?
SS: Probably one of those bears that found 50 Shades of Grey in his porridge!
JB: Love it! Before I get a grizzly hug, please summarise Sellick Creative.
SS: Sellick Creative specialise in creating brand stories in the automotive, retail, FMCG and hospitality sectors, across a range of creative channels to deliver what I call… more than just words and pictures.
See examples of Sellick Creative’s work at spark.adobe.com/page/nBjjuN0zhCeyX/
