Paul Rowan
Vice-president of design and founding partner of Umbra
Paul Rowan (left) is the co-founder and creative spirit behind Umbra, the internationally renowned brand known for changing the way people think about garbage cans, curtain rods and soap dishes.
1. Make it fun. Marketing is too important to be taken seriously.
2. Market your brand morning, noon and night. Unless you want to hear about Umbra, don’t sit next to me at a dinner party.
3. Ideas come from the most unexpected places. I look for inspiration everywhere, whether I’m at the AGO or the IGA .
4. Give back to the community. I spend a lot of time with students because I might be working for one of them someday.
5. Look for ideas that make you uncomfortable. True innovation has never been seen before. It’s hard to spot.
6. Live the brand. Dress the part. Yoji Yamamoto loves that I adhere to this rule.
7. Give credit where credit is due. I only hog the limelight when I am on stage.
8. Know when to hold, know when to fold. I’ve learned that some ideas are worth fighting for and some aren’t. The trick is knowing which is which.
9. Be tough. You’re only as good as your last toilet bowl brush.
10. Be nice. It’s easy and you’ll be remembered for it.
11. Stand out from the crowd. If you’re wondering whether we follow this rule, go take a look at our pink polycarbonate store.
12. Test, test and test again. Better your wife can’t figure out how to load the salt shaker than your customer.
13. Collaborate. Everyone becomes an owner when you open an idea to them.
14. Reinvent the mundane. The world needs us. It’s boring out there.
15. Never disappoint the customer. It’s taken 30 years to win their trust. Don’t blow it.
16. Follow your inner voice. It’s quiet so you have to listen carefully.
17. Don’t design up. Make sure your customer understands the product.
18. Don’t design down. Your customer is smarter than you think.
19. Put the hours in. It sounds cliché, but it’s true. It has taken blood, sweat and tears to get here.
20. Know who you are, and don’t be swayed by others. March to your own drummer. Or harmonica player, in my case.
