GOLD COAST GRAPHIC DESIGN - Key Persons
Daniel's vocational journey began in Medellin, Columbia, where he completed a degree in Graphic Design, Communication and Advertising and a diploma in Strategic Design and Innovation. His adventurous spirit brought him to Australia where, at GCGD, he prides himself on thinking outside of the box and wholeheartedly immersing himself in others' perspectives. He often leverages the skills he acquired in his previous job of designing commercial spaces for a leading Columbian retail company. "I'm a strong believer that doing the thing you love is the best motivation to do it right," he says. With a newfound passion for wakeboarding, he challenges himself to transcend his limits, overcome fears and learn new tricks.
"Real world experience" is what David brings to the table, together with an objective view that grows and sustains businesses. Having owned and operated businesses for over 40 years, David came to the company initially as a client needing business cards and website updates. Now, several years later, he is an integral part of the GCGD team and his qualities of leadership, commitment and caring shine through every day. David was also an air traffic controller for 10 years, served 23 years in the Army Reserve as a water transport unit coxswain and is now a crew member at Volunteer Marine Rescue. His perfect weekend? Thai food and Netflix with his wife, caravanning, or getting out on the water in SEQ.
Even as a university student, Gus was a winner. Studying advertising at Feevale University, Brazil, he was awarded Best Art Director and Best Advertising Campaign, among other accolades. During 10 years as a graphic designer, he has worked in print, advertising and e-commerce. His passion is for geometric, clean and meaningful logos, but what he loves most about GCGD is being able to adjust his style to different clients' needs to drive their business. Yet it could all have been so different: Gus almost became a priest. His family sent him to a Catholic monastery in the hope that he might hear the call. Thankfully for GCGD, he didn't. Today, he enjoys the freedom of travelling with friends, exploring exciting new destinations and cultures. Hitting the road is what he loves best.
Job Titles:
- Studio & Marketing Manager
Having studied advertising and political marketing in his Brazilian homeland, Isac first moved to Sydney to learn English before heading to Europe to complete his master's degree in marketing. Returning to Rio de Janeiro, he was Head of Marketing at the world-famous Copacabana Palace hotel for over five years. Starting a family compelled him to move back to the safety, culture and lifestyle of Australia. Today, he combines dynamism and strategic thinking with a friendly approach to business. He still dabbles in political marketing, currently working with James Owen for Tweed Shire Council. Passionate about travel, Isac's plan to visit 40 countries before he turned 40 was sadly scuppered by Covid. He consoles himself with weekends of 4-wheel driving, cooking over open fires and watching his son play in nature.
Josh does all the tricky stuff. Director of Peritum Studios, he's one of GCGD's partners in business, having met the team at a networking breakfast event in 2017. He takes care of the technical aspects of building and developing GCGD's websites, including hosting and domain name management. In addition to all his IT knowledge and programming expertise, he brings a valuable resource from his college teaching days. He has a knack for training clients in how to use their new website, making sure they're self-sufficient for any day-to-day edits. In his free time, he plays keys/piano in a band and is a black belt in taekwondo. At weekends, you'll find him catching up with mates at the beach, over a BBQ or down at the pub.
Junior Designer Ju is proof that you never stop learning. Graduating in advertising in Brazil, 2016, she came to Australia to learn English. An advanced diploma in graphic design followed and, while working as a freelance illustrator and designer, she also completed a marketing diploma. She is currently combining a design degree at Griffith University with her role at GCGD, loving the chance to learn about the real world of the design industry. Her strengths include fantastic digital illustration, thorough planning and figuring out creative solutions. In all this, Ju still finds time for fun - going to the beach with friends, trying out new restaurants and sketching. Few know that teenage Ju was a guitarist in a band, but shyness prevented her from turning full rockstar!
Graphic design was something Kelly hadn't even heard of until a test with a careers adviser revealed it was her dream job. Previously a jillaroo - a farm hand - she moved to the coast aged 23 with her baby daughter. Graphic design turned out to suit her and she never looked back. Twenty years later, Kelly says the mind-blowing skills of her team have allowed her to develop other strengths. "My hidden superpower is planning projects and working out the best way to get clients bang for their buck. This is the passion that excites me every day." For quiet time, Kelly loves to head bush in her van and soak up the Australian landscape. At weekends, if you're looking for someone to cook up a delicious bushfood feast on the coals, she's your woman!
Leo started his design journey way before he even understand what design means. From young age he connected two of his favourite things in life: Surfing and Drawing. While drawing on his old surfboards, Leo fell in love with the idea of creating and recreating nice things. At the age of 17, he decided to start his professional path. Passionate about the surf industry he started his degree in Advertising and Marketing focusing on Art Direction at Belas Arts of Sao Paulo University. With 7 years of experience working in the Advertising industry Leo arrived in Australia looking for new challenges. With this desire to learn more for the last year he has being learning as much as he can with us about branding and how to create a strong and solid visual identity.
The biggest character in the studio Lilly, Kelly's daughter (also know to many long standing clients as Rhiannon), couldn't help but be immersed in the creative GCGD world as she was growing up. A variety of jobs over the past few years and the chance to meet all manner of personalities has given her great people skills. So, connecting with clients comes easily to this outgoing woman who describes herself as "practically bionic" having had bolts and rods inserted in her spine. In her downtime, when not soaking up the sun or relaxing with her family, you will find our social media guru glued to her phone!
Maria studied for six years to be an architect in Madrid, but after just one year of practice, she realised she needed to be 100% creative every day. A career change beckoned. Moving to Australia, GCGD was her "perfect fit". Her work is defined by outstanding illustration skills and a talent for creating unique and out-of-the-box designs. A further strength lies in her ability to communicate with clients and understand their brand's soul. A dab hand with tools, Maria launched her own jewellery brand, minirings, while at university. Music flows through her veins, whether singing, playing electric guitar or strumming the ukulele. When relaxation calls, nothing beats a desert island with perfect waves for surfing and her boyfriend Sam. A trip with all her Spanish friends is a close second.
Skye is our OG resident designer within the team. She started her journey as a Junior Graphic Designer with us over 6 years ago after completing her Bachelor of Communication Design and now is one of our very talented Senior Graphic Designers. Since then her skillset has grown tenfold and she is dedicated to bringing brands to life through meaningful design solutions with a strong conceptual basis. One of Skye's stand out strengths is her ability to thrive in situations that require her to adapt to different design styles to fit a particular brief. From holistic coaches, tradies, horse feed packaging design and everything in between - there's not many industries Skye hasn't worked within. Skye loves working on projects that are challenging and full of personality.
Tiago had already travelled to all the continents on earth before reaching his 30s. Having gained a degree in advertising, he moved to Angola in southwestern Africa where he worked as a graphic designer and art director for over 10 years. Immersing himself in the culture, he developed and led a range of successful campaigns and projects - and also met his wife-to-be. He has worked in agencies the length and breadth of Brazil, throwing himself with gusto into projects embracing a huge diversity of clients and industries. As a vibrant, imaginative person with a rich depth of experience, he brings an innovative freshness to his role at GCGD. To relax? Family is paramount: whatever he does, as long as he's with them it's perfect.