By Carey Peck,Senior Copywriter
What’s Your Process is a Q&A series at EPIC where we ask our team members to share how they produce creative content to meet the needs and desires of our clients.
I haven’t met any creative directors who used to dabble in the art and performance of professional wrestling. Well, I guess I haven’t worked with any other people who used to be professional wrestlers—but certainly not an advertising agency creative director.
Meet Steve Garrou, a creative director who used to drop elbows from the top ropes and deliver chairs to the face. Nowadays, he’s not wrestling so much, but his physical presence would say otherwise. While he’s busy inspiring and empowering our entire creative team, that doesn’t mean he’s forgotten about his wrestling roots. He stays connected to the wrestling world in a way that’s directly related to his day-to-day exploits for our company, employing his extensive creative skillset and his eye for design for local, independent wrestling organizations.
But enough of my rambling, let’s hear directly from Steve and how he works on a daily basis here at EPIC Creative.
Q: What’s a high-level description of your career so far? Got some quick hits?
Started as a Graphic Designer at a casino. Then, a Designer at a PR agency. Followed by Lead Designer to Art Director in-house with a manufacturer. Finally, a stint as a Senior Designer at a Healthcare agency. That’s pretty much my trajectory. But I didn’t really find my creative voice until I experienced the freedom that EPIC offers, having made my way from Senior Designer to Art Director, and now Creative Director.
Q: Not everyone in the creative world can describe their process, but I have a feeling you can. What’s it like?
Our Chief Creative Officer, Joe (Rogge), has taught me a lot about being loose as it applies to the creative process—and not letting my process define who I am as a creative. At this point in my career, I would say that process depends on the ask, which is to say that your process cannot be a one-size-fits-all concept.
However, I do have ONE non-negotiable when it comes to any creative project I work on: immerse myself in the subject and learn as much as possible about what needs to be communicated. I deep dive and dig into any research I can get my hands on, everything from audiences and personas to information about the current state (and history) of the industry and relevant trends. This process is like giving my intuition an education, and it helps me make authentic, purposeful, and considered decisions in the creative. Following your gut when you’re immersed in this context is what separates art from strategic execution.
Q: At EPIC, you’re a leader for the creative team. How do you stay inspired and keep the team inspired to create new, fresh ideas and concepts?
So, here’s a bit of backstory without diving in: I used to be an independent professional wrestler [Editor’s note: I already spoiled this, sorry Steve!]. As I grew as a creative, I quickly realized that the performance art side of the wrestling business was an incredible creative outlet for me. It taught me a lot about perception being reality and the art of long-term storytelling. Since hanging up my wrasslin’ boots six years ago, I’ve kept in touch with many of my peers and do a lot of marketing work for wrestlers and wrestling companies in Wisconsin. This work allows me to “get weird” with exploring wild creative ideas, due to the subject matter being so different from the work I do at EPIC. This work has helped me better understand trends and marketing tactics outside of our client roster and has opened up new doors for me creatively.
At the same time, there’s a lot of crossover between this work and what I do at EPIC; from content creation, creating for social platforms, and deep diving into video production to branding. These are all things I bring back to the team to help inspire everyone (myself included) to push further when the opportunity arises.
Q: What is the hardest part of what you do, and what’s the best part?
Hardest? Well, ah, anything that doesn’t have to do with my job. The best? It’s about the people. Peers, co-workers, those in adjacent departments, leadership, clients, you name it. EPIC hires and works with genuinely great people, and I love it.
Q: Any thoughts or feelings on what’s next in the design world?
Blah, blah, blah … AI. I have my personal feelings on AI (primarily its lack of human intuition) but that’s a different topic. I think the future will consist of creatives finding ways to coexist with AI-related toolsets, with the end result being better creative in the long run. Sure, AI is a threat, but creatives are resilient and adapt well to stress. I’m confident that we’ll push through and see new advancements and techniques to push back against our Terminator opposition. I want to be spicer about this topic, but everyone else is doing that work for me.
Q: I feel like I should ask a question that’s on brand for us: farting or burping, what’s better?
I mean, burps can be pretty satisfying, but at 42 I still haven’t met a fart that didn’t at least make me chuckle. In the contest of superior bodily function, farts will always win. [Editor’s note: I agree!]
