small studios making a profit?
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- fredddddd
is it possible.
I see studios like huntergatherer:
http://www.huntergatherer.net/in…post updates so infrequently.
I love the stuff, but wonder how they get by sometimes, especially in ny
- showpony0
i'm a big fan of huntergatherer as well... and though i can't speak to him specifically, i do know that a lot of other smaller guys like him do work that they never show to pay the bills.
- detritus0
...and when you're doing your own thing, updating your own site takes a quaternary position to new work, maintaining relationships and treading water.
- Amicus0
quaternary is the word!
If you are constantly busy with a million other things and doing well, why would you stress about updating a website?
- Douglas0
I think Todd is doing pretty well because he's a nice dude, and the guy has serious talent. His studio is in Brooklyn, which helps cut cost a bit, and motion jobs pay pretty decent. Infrequent updates often means they are too busy or don't need to (as said above).
- gramme0
I'm a one-man band. I've become profitable, and can attest to the fact that finding time to update one's website is nearly impossible.
I'd say about 35–50% of the work I'm doing these days is good enough for my portfolio. My main breadwinner client gives me a ton of mundane work, but occasionally I get to design something really nice for them.
- Rand0
a lot of what pays the bills may not warrant a presence on your site
- dirtydesign0
do small shops like this get paid on a job by job basis, or you think they're on a retainer?
- i do this in a small shop, retainerdoesnotexist
- i think HunterGather is job by job mostly.Douglas
- monospaced0
I used to work in a very, very small shop (4 people) and I can tell you with full confidence that the principal/owner made serious bank.
- big clients / good designmonospaced
- fanta moneyfredddddd
- wannaacrossthesea
- yes, Coca-Cola money for sure (and Target and Adidas)monospaced
- robulation0
In response to dirty design, I reckon it's a bit of both. I worked for a very small agency at one point and they had big clients that were on a retainer, and others that used to be invoiced every month or after a particularly large project was finished. . . or just when the company was a feeling the pinch a little bit, it's always a risk but at one point the one I worked for was pretty exciting to work for!
- digdre0
nice work, that chap.
- non0
Team of two here. We've been living comfortably off our craft for the past five years.
- nthkl0
The hourly burn of a small shop is less than a larger shop, which has the man power to justify owning the account. Though, all those individuals will be booked on other projects, so the agency will outsource to another small vendor.
Project budget from client to agency: 250k
Internal burn of agency (Charged to client at $150/hr): 70k
Actual burn of agency for full time rate of employees: 16kOutsource cost to vendor to do majority of project, say a 4 man shop: 20k.
Actual burn of 2 people working on that project from the vendor: 8kVendor profit 12k. Sleep = 0
Agency profit 214k - Sleep = 8 hours a night
- nthkl0
The hourly burn of a small shop is less than a larger shop, which has the man power to justify owning the account. Though, all those individuals will be booked on other projects, so the agency will outsource to another small vendor.
Project budget from client to agency: 250k
Internal burn of agency (Charged to client at $150/hr): 70k
Actual burn of agency for full time rate of employees: 16kOutsource cost to vendor to do majority of project, say a 4 man shop: 20k.
Actual burn of 2 people working on that project from the vendor: 8kVendor profit 12k. Sleep = 0
Agency profit 214k - Sleep = 8 hours a night
- Guss0
You have to keep in mind that he also teaches at Yale. That's probably his "day job".