To say I’ve had a life in print would be an understatement — at the age of 17 I was offered an apprenticeship with a traditional printer. I learned how to set type in a ‘stick’ and resigned myself to having ‘inky fingers’!

After seven years I qualified as a Journeyman, completing a City & Guilds Certificate in Printing and becoming competent at setting type on a Monotype ‘D’ Keyboard.

My progression led me to the world of paste-up, working for a small independent with big connections. Working with brands like Nissan, Ricardo Engineering and the IAAF, I learnt about repro cameras, bromides and the original ‘cut and paste’!

My entry into Desktop Publishing came with the advent of the Apple Macintosh — something that was hard to envisage at the time! Mostly self-taught, ploughing through the QuarkXPress and Aldus Freehand manuals, I worked for another independent, producing material for Barratt Resorts and Air Miles.

Through my previous position, I established a link with the motor retail giant Nissan UK, based in Worthing, and was offered a position in the design studio, producing advertising and promotional material for its 250-strong dealership network. I helped to set up the studio with Mac workstions and a Monotype Prism imagesetter, producing camera-ready artwork for the sizeable in-house print department and national newspapers.

Self employment followed redundancy and I produced artwork for a modest client pool which included Automotive Leasing and Automotive Financial Services.

A short stint in repro taught me the fundamentals of plate-making and producing Chromalins (progressive colour proofs — for those too young to remember!)

I was then fortunate enough to land a job with a medical marketing agency, producing scientific material for major international pharmaceuticals such as Pfizer, Bayer and Glaxo.

My path then led me to a local printer who was looking for someone to head up an in-house design studio and run a Xerox DC250 digital press. Equipment expansion introduced a Konica Minolta c6501 bizhub press, followed by a more recent c1085, together with the Fiery Graphic Arts suite.

So… that’s me in a nutshell!