Today we’d like to introduce you to Robin Piazza and Michelle Kowalski.
Hi Robin and Michelle, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
We met in design school at the University of Cincinnati and became friends commiserating over cutting tiny pieces of paper for projects. After college, we each worked in our respective fields, signage and wayfinding for Robin, and UI/UX design for Michelle, for several years. As a way to document all of our many side projects and keep our grandmas informed, we started a blog and loved the creative freedom that came from branding and designing that site. Around 2019 we were both ready to jump into working for ourselves and figured it would be more fun and better for future clients to combine our efforts. Enter Walder Studio.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The last couple of years have been one challenge after another globally, but we’ve been fortunate to not hit many major bumps as we got going with Walder Studio. Like we’re sure many small business owners know, we’re now the design team, project managers, accountants, HR, and office managers all at once. Learning how to balance all of these roles is something we’re still figuring out.
We’ve been impressed with Walder Studio, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Walder Studio specializes in graphic design, branding + strategy, web design, and signage + wayfinding design. We’re based in Austin, TX and Cleveland, OH. Whether our clients are hiring a designer for the first time or they’ve worked with firms in the past, we work hard to be a friendly and approachable resource. Since our early careers took us in different directions before starting Walder Studio, we’re now able to bring our varied expertise under one roof. We’re proud of the relationships we’ve built with our clients and love that we get to work on projects of all sizes ranging from first-time entrepreneurs to large companies.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
We lucked into meeting each other in college and were fortunate to go to a great design school. The University of Cincinnati is known for its Co-Op program which allowed us to have internships in LA, Cincinnati, New York, and Germany. We got to see how different companies structured their projects (and office snack bars) and could take the best parts with us.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.walderstudio.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/walderstudio/
Image Credits
Studio Headshots, Kara Marie Collective Projects, Walder Studio
