Success leaves clues. Finances Strategists sat down with Chris Harris, founder of Red Kite Design. He shared his thoughts on the past, present, and future of the company, as well as the insight he gained from running the business. Q: Who are you and what’s your background? I was born in Scotland but later moved to England with my family. I went on to study Business with a Specialism in Marketing at the University of Manchester.After graduating I wasn’t sure where my true passion lied, and although I enjoyed marketing, I felt like something was missing. Whilst I figured out where I wanted to take my career I took the opportunity to travel, visiting over forty countries, living and working on three continents. On my return I decided that design was my calling, transitioning into the industry through a course in Website Design and Development. Q: Knowing what you know now, what would you have told yourself when you were just starting out? Looking back at the years before I started my business I was guilty of a lot of self-doubts. I had serious imposter syndrome, and although I had years of experience under my belt, the fear of failure delayed me from taking those first steps for far longer than it should have. I’d let myself know that all the self-doubt and fear is completely unnecessary. Failure shouldn’t be feared, and instead is an experience that you can learn from. Put yourself out there. Every step you take, no matter how small, is a step in the right direction. Q: What makes Red Kite stand out from its competitors? Red Kite is a branding agency, specializing in logos and identities. Whilst there are a lot of businesses on the market that offer logo and identity design, our service goes far beyond the visuals, and instead offers design solutions that are deeply rooted in business strategy.At the outset of every project, we take the time to get to know our clients and their businesses inside out. We find out what makes them tick, dig deep into their target market, and ensure we have a firm grasp on their competitive landscape. Arming ourselves with this knowledge ensures that as well as creating our clients' branding that is visually appealing, more importantly, we create identities that will help their business stand out from the crowd, and appeal to their ideal clients. A Red Kite brand is more than a logo. It’s personality, visual consistency, messaging, tone of voice, and more! Q: What led you to start Red Kite Design? I got into the design industry by taking a course in website design, then spending 8 years working my way up through several successful design agencies in both the UK and Australia. Agency life allowed me to dabble in all areas of design, but branding had me hooked. Freelance gave me the opportunity to grow my new passion, and as I got better, and gained new clients, I got an insatiable itch to do more. Starting Red Kite gave me the opportunity to push myself to new heights, work on bigger and better projects, my ambitions growing year on year. For more information, see RedKite.Design. 
Introduction
Background
Business
True Tamplin is a published author, public speaker, CEO of UpDigital, and founder of Finance Strategists.
True is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance (CEPF®), author of The Handy Financial Ratios Guide, a member of the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing, contributes to his financial education site, Finance Strategists, and has spoken to various financial communities such as the CFA Institute, as well as university students like his Alma mater, Biola University, where he received a bachelor of science in business and data analytics.
To learn more about True, visit his personal website or view his author profiles on Amazon, Nasdaq and Forbes.
