StudioVincent

Creative direction that builds memorable products.AI raised the floorBuilding epic products still takes people.

I help founders and product teams find the version of the work that's worth committing to. Most teams ship the safe version of what they're building because it's easier to defend. The harder version, the one that actually stands out, needs someone in the room to make it inevitable. That's what I do.I help teams find the direction others can't see, then the conviction to build it.

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How we start

2–6 weeks

Quick Win

A sharp review of what you've built, ending in three or more concrete recommendations and the one bet with the most upside. And I can design and ship the fix too, not just hand you a list.

Good for You've shipped, it works, but you sense it could be sharper, and you want concrete moves fast.

The process
  1. Use it for real. I use the product as a real user would, while checking your flows, backlog, analytics, existing designs, and the competitors you're measured against.
  2. Find the real gaps. Where it's over- and under-delivering on what it's trying to do.
  3. Hand you the bet. Three or more concrete recommendations, ranked, plus the one I'd put real money on. And I can design and ship it, not just name it.
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4+ weeks

Deep Dive

A deeper look than a sprint allows, at what your product is really trying to be, and where intention and execution have drifted apart. You leave with a solid new direction and a clear target to build toward, written up with sketches and references. If you want the designs to go with it, I can do that too.

Good for The product works, but you're no longer sure it's the right one, and you want a direction you can trust.

The process
  1. Name the gap. What the product is really trying to be, tested against what it actually does.
  2. Work past the obvious. The right direction usually only shows up after the easy answer's been rejected a few times, so I don't stop at the first thing that fits.
  3. Bring in the outside. A clear new direction and a target to build toward, written up with sketches and references pulled from well beyond your category.
  4. Design it, if you want. Optional designs to go with the direction.
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6–8 weeks

Step Change

Builds on the Deep Dive to find a direction that changes the rules of your category, not just the product itself. You leave with a fully developed creative direction your team can commit toward and build.

Good for There's real white space, and you want to change the game, not just play it better.

The process
  1. Move up a level. Building on the Deep Dive, I go after the rules of your category, not just the product itself.
  2. Invent, don't recombine. Where there's white space in your market, there are no references to reach for, so I work from the blank page and make something that's never existed.
  3. Compose the feel. A product's atmosphere is the sum of many small decisions made consistently; I treat it as something to compose, not decorate.
  4. Hand over the direction. A fully developed creative direction your team can commit toward and build.
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3 months minimum

Embed Direction

After one of the engagements above, I stay close to your team so the direction we found survives the build instead of quietly eroding. A few teams at a time, so the attention is real.

Good for You've got the direction and need it to survive contact with the roadmap.

The process
  1. Stay attached. A monthly arrangement after one of the above, so the direction actually gets built without losing its substance.
  2. Two days a month. Reviews of work in progress, a monthly call, and being on hand for the harder questions.
  3. A few teams only. Kept deliberately small, so the attention is real.
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  1. 1. A 30-minute call. We talk about what you're working on, who's involved, and what you're trying to figure out. You ask whatever you want about how I work. By the end we both know whether to keep going.
  2. 2. A short proposal, within a few days. Scope, timeline, fee, deliverables. If anything doesn't feel right, we adjust before signing.
  3. 3. Work starts within one or two weeks. For shorter engagements that means I'm in your product and talking to your team. For longer engagements we agree a rhythm, usually one or two days a week embedded.
  4. 4. We talk if anything changes. Scope shifts, priorities move, a different shape of work would be more useful. I'd rather adjust openly than push through a bad fit.
Common questions Hide questions

What if I don't know what shape of engagement I want?

Common, and fine. The first call is partly to figure that out. I'll tell you honestly which format fits, or if none of them do.

How do you handle confidentiality?

NDA on request, signed before specifics. I don't write about client work without explicit permission.

Do you take equity instead of fees?

Mostly no. Cash keeps the relationship clean. Open to partial equity alongside reduced cash for early-stage work that's genuinely meaningful, not as default.

What if it isn't a good fit?

We don't proceed. Better to decline at scoping than underdeliver. If something feels wrong mid-engagement, we talk and either adjust or close out cleanly.

Recent work

Essays on creative direction, product, making, and why most things you use end up forgettable and how to do it differently.

Send me your stuff

I respond to a few submissions each month with a considered note, a sketch, or both. The ones I reply to are the ones where I have something genuinely useful to say. Pick the closest fit below.

By submitting you give Studio Vincent permission to use your submission and the response as part of an ongoing practice. Identifying details will be anonymized in any public use.

Available for hire; contact me for availability.

Open to founders and product teams who want help finding the version of the work that's worth committing to.

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