Check Out ADAM G’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to ADAM G.

ADAM, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I started my design career in New York City at big advertising agencies as an Art Director and worked my way up to Creative Director over 10 years or so.

I always loved the creativity and design aspects of the agency world but I became disillusioned with the marketing and politics of it all. I grew tired of putting my energy into products and people I didn’t believe in. When I decided to move back to LA with my partner Monika Kehrer (also an ad agency art director) we made the decision to start our own little design studio where we could focus on what we love doing – designing. So, TRÜF was born in 2006.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There’s no such thing as a smooth road! There’s always potholes, detours and crashes. And I think. it’s those things that make you smarter, tougher and able to handle the ongoing struggles of running a business, especially in a business as subjective and now democratized like ours.

One of the major challenges for the first many years was to get used to the idea that we were, in fact, running a business. Having all our contracts, paperwork, payment terms, legal, accounting and all the stuff that ISN’T FUN or comes naturally to creatives had to be really learned and honed over time. Fun is fun, but it doesn’t pay the bills or protect you from a litigious world unfortunately. We learned the hard way a few times.

We were also trying to be all things to all clients. Of course the motivation was to please but I think it ended up spreading us thin and gave us a lack of focus – kind of a “jack of all trades, master of none…” situation. It took a while but we realized we needed to focus on our own unique design style, even if it alienated or narrowed our potential marketability. It was scary, risky and personal but it paid off and ended up attracting clients big and small that we’d never dreamed would gravitate to our “weirdness.” Being true to yourself is hard and it’s often hard to find what that thing is, but I think it’s the only way to go.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
TRÜF is a creative design studio that infuses authenticity, simplicity and boldness into new and established brands. From cultural institutions to consumer goods to tech and finance, companies love collaborating with us because we listen carefully, think strategically and design thoughtfully.

We’re known for our unique design style. We mix artfulness with big, bold commercial design so that we can work on a wide range of client projects from global giants to tiny, independent wineries. It’s fun to have that kind of range and keeps things interesting. We’re also tiny for better or worse which gets rid of a lot of layers and bullshit. Clients tend to appreciate the more intimate communication and that tends to lead to a better outcome for everyone.

What were you like growing up?
I was the typical artsy kid I suppose! Not great at sports, quiet, but I really loved painting and drawing and took to it from the time I was a baby (according to my mother). I was fortunate to have parents that supported it and allowed me to pursue the fine arts all the way through college. And then I was on my own!

That’s probably why I ended up in advertising after college – I had to pay the rent, eat and support life things that painting wasn’t doing or wasn’t doing quickly enough. The rest is…the rest!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.trufcreative.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trufcreative
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thatsmyhead/
• Other: https://www.messymod.com

Image Credits
Rum bottle: Steve St. Jean