The First Steps

Where did my tough, independent, creative, entrepreneurial sides come from?

I grew up in a passionate, vocal and uninhibited Italian family with three older brothers. To be seen or heard and not always end up with the heel of the Italian bread passed around the table, I learned early to take a position – making sure I was on solid ground. Entrepreneurship and independence emerged at age six, selling at the end of our driveway hand-painted rocks and stuff I made from birch bark — yes, rocks and bark. Later I delivered a local news journal around the neighborhood.

In my teens I fed the elderly in a nursing home, waited tables in a classy restaurant, and doled out pie slices at a pizza parlor. The providential pad and color pencils my grandmother gave me when I was laid up with a broken shoulder (yep, I was also
an athlete – and often the team captain) showed I not only liked to draw, but was
good at it.

...and that was only the beginning.

The Next Steps

Kirtland College and a degree in Commercial Art. Wayne State with a BFA with a major in graphic design and a minor in communications. Then into the real world in the pressure-packed newspaper business, where I evolved from the pre-press and printing side of the business to my first love – design. From there to a major PR company, where I was the Creative Director serving a diverse range of accounts. Always learning, growing, changing, and seeking ways to be better. Surrounding myself with amazingly talented people; many – including clients — often asking why I wasn’t running my own company.

Which led to...

The Giant Step (My family called it a "leap".)

Becoming an entrepreneur in a tough, competitive marketplace was a big risk — and one I was destined for, considering my career history, my professional experience in brand development and design, and my passion to create distinctive messages that break through the clutter and move people to respond and remember.

First came the game plan. Next came taking the chance by forming Impresa, followed by early encouragement when a dozen prestigious clients believed enough to follow along. Maybe they recognize I am not only a good designer and conceptual thinker, but also a good listener who relates to their communications problems. Maybe they like that I am well organized, a skillful planner, ask the right questions and come up with unexpected, effective, efficient solutions. I become an extension of their companies – a true partner, rather than a vendor. Successfully working with many major brands such as McDonalds, Verizon, Comcast, Woodward Dream Cruise, Goodwill Industries, along with many other non-profits and b2b/b2c enterprises, has allowed me to understand the importance of being a part of each client’s team and culture.

That’s my story so far... and it’s still only the beginning.