Today we’d like to introduce you to Alejandro Larramendi.
Alejandro, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I was born and raised in Cuba. I came to the States with my parents at the age of 14 with hopes of a better future. I lived in Miami where I went to college and study Design and Photography.
I didn’t know I was going to be a designer, It kinda happened by mistake. I actually wanted to be an architect, but the school I went to didn’t have a strong program for it. I took a few classes on typography and ended up liking Design. I graduated in 2007 and started working right away. I was working on everything I could get my hands on. I jump around few places and even had three jobs at one point. It was crazy, but it was fun and I was developing my skills. I took on a love for photography and retouching. Then in 2010 I decided to enter the world of Advertising. I left design studio I was working for at the time and took an Internship at and Ad Agency in Miami.
The Internship was great. I was in a Big shop this time and the work was great. I met a lot of good talented people made some great friends there that eventually ended up helping me get here, to LA. After the Internship was over went back to working at different places until one of the guys I was working closely with at the Internship referred me to another big shop and this time as a full-time employee. Then later on the opportunity came to either go to New York or go to LA. Coming from Miami I thought it couldn’t have been easier, LA of course. Now I have been here in LA for 3 years now and I love it here. So many opportunities here for work and collaborate with talented people.
Has it been a smooth road?
Oh man. There were many. I started from the bottom. The language was one of them of course. I had to learn English and get used to a new country altogether.
What are some of the influences that have played the biggest role in your journey so far?
My parents always pushed me to follow dreams, and supported me on whatever it was I wanted to do. I am very thankful to have them. I remember early on when I was in my first year of community college my father saw I wasn’t happy in that particular school. I remember having a conversation with him one weekend. I told him I felt I wasn’t learning anything there and that I was wasting my time and falling behind. He listened to me, and I don’t know how he did it but the next week I was going to a Design School. There is also a lot of great people and colleagues I met along the way that helps me and encourage me to keep at it.
What type of clients or projects do you look forward to most?
For me, my favorite clients are those that give you the freedom to create great work. They are working with you along the way, they are involved in the process for day one and it feels more like a collaboration. Sometimes I help my friends with small projects and I don’t any money of it, and that’s ok. It makes happy to be able to that for them, just the same way people have help me.
I would like to work on more personal projects, develop a brand of my on. It would be nice.
What do you know now that you wish you knew when you were just starting out?
Make tons of mistakes early on and learn from them. Listen to everyone and learn from everyone. Don’t sell yourself short, you know what your worth. Have a point of view and stay true to it. Be honest, Be humble and Stay hungry.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.larramendi.co
- Phone: 305 335 9377
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_alejandroli_/
- Other: https://vsco.co/larramendi/images/1
