Ben Watkinson, GF Smith || Longevity
When I begin work with a new client, their specific understanding of success is a vital first step. Often I find myself ushering people towards adding ‘longevity’ to the list. In an era where everything seems to happen ever faster, comparison is rife and the state of the world makes it hard to visualise what the future will hold, this is not an easy aspiration to have. But it is a highly valuable one. Today’s guest certainly has achieved it. Ben Watkinson is the Creative Director of GF Smith.
Image Credit: Rick Pushinsky
Image Credit: Tian Kee Siong
Let me take you back to 1885. George V was on the throne here, Mark Twain published Huckleberry Finn, the football association recognised professional footballers, the Glasgow Boys first exhibited collectively and George Frederick Smith founded a new paper merchant called GF Smith and son to supply printers with the finest papers.
For over 135 years, G . F Smith has been obsessed with the simple beauty and limitless possibilities of paper. Their desire is that, through the hands of the design community, they can bring creativity to life and constantly innovate with one of the world’s oldest materials.
Ben is one of the custodians of this great legacy. For GF Smith, ‘founded in 1885’ isn’t a marketing slogan; it’s an approach to doing business. We are lucky enough in this episode to be able to ask about the power of paper, the work of a paper merchant, resilience, innovation, company culture and what the next one hundred years might bring.
“The way I see it, I am responsible for taking one of the oldest materials in the world and making that creatively inspiring and exciting and relevant and emotionally engaging to an audience who are getting increasingly used to a digital way of communicating. I am a firm believer that both can live side by side. ”
Image Credit: Tian Khee Siong