Michael C Place (the 'C' stands for Christopher if you must know) is a Yorkshire-born graphic designer, creative director and founder of the successful design studio, Build.
He claims to have only had two full-time jobs: one working for Trevor Jackson at Bite It! in London and another at The Designers Republic in Sheffield with Ian Anderson back in the 1990s – both of which involved "lots of hard work" and ultimately led to him setting up his own business. But not before he took a year off to travel the world with his wife Nicky. He was burnout and needed a break.
When they returned home in 2001, they moved to London and Build was born. After playing such a pivotal role in defining the aesthetic of electronic music, he quickly picked up clients such as Google and Nike. Then, a few years ago, with home calling (for various reasons), Michael moved back up north to Leeds where his studio is now based.
Earlier this year, we popped over the Pennines from Manchester to have a chat with Michael about those TDR days, the design industry in general and why moving out of London has been the best decision he and Nicky ever made.
This was, of course, pre-lockdown. And we must say, we didn't initially plan to launch this episode because, at some point, a walkie talkie interferes with the damn recording. The plan was to meet again and have another go. But following many weeks of lockdown, we felt you'd forgive the minor blip. An honest, humble chat with one of the biggest names in design.
