Graphic design might be your passion, but there’s a lot of hard work and difficult clients that goes into a graphic design career (not to mention the terrifying reality of having to put your art out there). Creative duo Anna Dower and Emma Kate understand the obstacles facing working designers all too well, and have made it their priority to educate and help other graphic designers fulfill all of their business goals. We had a quick chat with Anna and Emma about their upcoming summit happening online from September 13th – September 15th .

Hiya Anna and Emma! Please introduce yourselves and what you do. Anna: I’m Anna Dower and I get to spend my days being the fairy godmother of graphic designers. I am a mentor and I help others create design businesses that allow them have a life beyond the screen, and rake in some cash at the same time. 

Emma: And I’m Emma Kate. I’m a graphic designer turned web designer and now teach other designers how to master the wonderful world of web. I have online courses and a membership supporting female designers to learn WordPress web development and build their dream web design business.

How did you both get into graphic design? Anna: I was one of those freakish kids who always knew that they wanted to be a designer. When I first got a job in the industry, I realised that not all designer roles mean that you get to be creative. I worked at a soul-sucking job for a decade before deciding to start my own design business in my garage. Just me and my Mac.

Emma: I randomly heard about graphic design in my final year of an Arts degree. With random majors in Spanish and Video Production I was pretty much unemployable – but that’s when I started seeing graphic design positions pop up on Seek. I then made the decision to enrol in a Bachelor of Visual Media majoring in graphic design and haven’t looked back since. I absolutely fell in love with graphic design. Here’s a fun fact: back then my dream was to graduate and work at frankie magazine. I’m pretty sure I even applied for an internship!

What’s your favourite and least favourite aspect of working in graphic design? Anna: I mentor graphic designers these days and the absolute best part is seeing them charge their worth and get paid! It’s so validating for them and it just gives them so much confidence to propel their business forward. My least favourite aspect of the industry is the competitiveness. I honestly believe there is enough out there for everyone and community over competition wins every time.

Emma: I’d say both the creativity and being able to serve other designers. Helping others gives me a big beautiful sense of purpose. I mentally pinch myself on the regular, actually! It gives me all the warm and fuzzies. But on top of that, being a designer is the perfect job for someone like me who needs a creative outlet to feel sane. As for my least favourite aspect, I’d say the occasions when clients don’t share my creative vision. At times, no matter how brilliant I think the work I’ve created is and how well I’ve explained the meaning behind it all to my client, sometimes they just want something completely different.

What is the Designer Boss Summit? Anna: The summit is a totally free three-day event especially for graphic and web designers. We've rounded up around 20 design pros from Australia and New Zealand and each of these experts have created a masterclass to drop some serious knowledge bombs, all geared towards helping designers up their game without the unnecessary grind. It's like a turbo boost for your design biz! 

What inspired you to launch the summit? Anna: During the wild rollercoaster ride that was 2020, the design scene was in full-on panic mode. It was a total whirlwind of uncertainty. Emma and I had been tossing around the idea of a summit for a while, and bam – the stars aligned. We knew this was our moment to make it happen. We wanted to throw the design industry a safety net and arm them with some serious tools to tackle the chaos head-on. 

If you could give graphic designers one piece of advice, what would it be? Anna: I would tell them to communicate their value in everything they do, because they are so valuable. Even in the face of DIY and Canva, graphic designers have the power to make a business a raging success.

Emma: You don’t have to do it alone. I was a lone wolf for too many years when I started my design business which forced me to learn a lot of things the hard way. Connecting with other designers helps you fast-track to building your successful business or career in design.

What do you hope people will get out of the Designer Boss Summit? Anna: I hope they get some great ideas on how to diversify their income and make more money! I also hope they feel the togetherness of our community. Even though our audience is global it feels really tight knit and lovely. Working from home doesn’t have to feel isolating. 

Emma: I hope that each designer who attends will walk away feeling inspired, excited and motivated to create their dream design business, and that they feel confident and supported in doing so too!

The Designer Boss Summit will be held from September 13th – September 15th. Get your free tickets over here.

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