How To Make The Leap

Planning Unit’s JeffKnowles shares his advice for moving a business idea from ‘pub talk’ to reality.

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Nick Hard and I worked at Neville Brody’s Research Studios for six and 12 years, respectively. After both leaving at the same time, we went out on our own, and set up Planning Unit in February 2011. Looking back now, we’d probably been thinking about setting up together for a good year. One thing we realise now is that it’s hard to get beyond an idea simply being ‘pub talk’. It is a big decision, but if you’re already talking about it in the pub, it probably means you’re ready to do it. So why wait? What’s the worst that can happen?

The age-old problem of deciding a name for the studio was an easy one. Planning Unit was a renowned graphic design studio in the ’60s and ’70s and was owned by Nick’s grandfather. So as the old Planning Unit was part of Nick’s family history, it was an easy decision to re-establish the name. It also gave the studio a background and a story, which helps.