A Brief Look Back
I come from a long line of entrepreneurs. My father was a World War II pilot; after the war, he owned his own service stations, feeding his passion for cars. My grandfather owned a hardware store in Oregon and had a ranch. On my mom’s side, all of her seven brothers were dairy farmers. Also, my great-great uncle, a contractor, built some of the first bridges in Idaho.
In the early days when Comet Creative was Skyline Design Group, I was finishing my modeling and acting career and completing my education at UCSD. For a time, I worked for a large biotech firm. While working there using a Mac computer, I was hooked, quit my job and hit the pavement to find clients. I must have gone to fifty possible businesses, and landed the Taylor Made Golf account. I worked with them for more than a decade as a design consultant, and got MBA experience working with amazing marketers at Taylor Made.
Our job is to help brands shine! Being able to discover that unique aspect from our clients and bring it to light has always fascinated me. One of the biggest satisfaction as a designer here at Comet Creative is to see our client proud and confident of their company through the work we’ve done for them.
—Beibei An, Graphic Designer
Finding Perspective
For a time, with nine people working at the studio, I wasn’t creating any design work, instead I was overseeing our company. At that time, I made the decision to become leaner and smaller. I focused on staying agile with changing trends amid shifting economies. Our firm made it through a number of recessions, with the one in 2009 being a whopper.
Thanks to Gemological Institute of America, I was hired to design their magazine and other projects that kept us going through the lean times; I am grateful to GIA.
One of the things I love about Comet Creative is our focus on purpose. Curiosity and passion drive us to be intimately invested in the businesses we work with. It’s fulfilling to see our clients’ values and purpose create a positive wave throughout the company and their community.
—Nikki Holloway, Client Experience Manager
Now in our third decade, we are still creating great design and have the trust of many repeat clients. Personally, I am dedicated to Nikki, Beibei, Rob, Vivian, Jorge and Meli, along with our consultants who work together on the day-to-day projects. And of course Mika, our resident boxer dog and food expert. Beibei has created this amazing video that we all collaborated on to tell our story. I hope you will take the time to see the result of her labor and amazing design talent.
Finally, I can’t forget my husband and partner for life, Richard Dowdy. He continues to have a role in the company as our top-notch editor. While continuing his long career as an Indycar photographer and shooting surfers when the waves are good, he is writing a novel.
You may wonder, “When is she going to stop?” Not just yet. I love what I do here at Comet Creative while continuing my art projects and taking yoga classes in between.
Thank you to everyone who has contributed to our success, both financially and personally. I can’t say that it has been easy at times; life is not like that. Yet, it’s a great ride and one that’s far from over.
Interning here at Comet Creative has really helped me learn the important value of seeing every design opportunity as an opportunity to help people and their company succeed first and foremost.
—Meli Nguyen, Graphic Design Intern
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