Graphic Designo: A Passionate Animation Studio, Beats the 2020 Pandemic Crisis

Mohd Zeeshan of Graphic Designo about how they help brands and organisations strengthen and stand out among their giant competitors.

First of all, how are you and your family doing in these COVID-19 times? 

Mohd Zeeshan: My family and I are absolutely fine and fortunate, none of us has been impacted with COVID-19, and we all beat it positively. The initial few months were tough, but gradually we opted for the new normal, and we became familiar with it, I restarted my business in June last year, and since then, we are doing great.

Fortunately, in India’s capital, COVID-19 did not spread much, and we managed to take it smoothly, though we all realize the value of hugs and simple handshakes…on a positive note, COVID-19 made us closer, and we all spent more time with each other.

Tell us about you, your career, how you founded Graphic Designo.

Mohd Zeeshan: My younger brother Mohd Danish and I started this business during our younger years. At that time, I was in college, and he was in school. I had to take up many jobs during my studies, alongside this business, so as to survive, as we started it with zero investment. Without any financial help from family and friends, initially, we faced a lot of financial hurdles. Still, we managed to overcome all the difficulties and turn this startup into a million-dollar company.

My passion lies in marketing and management, though my brother has a passion for art and skills, so I manage the clients, and he manages the artist, and we both make a perfect combination to run this successful business. Currently, we have 40+ full-time employees with two studios at the best locations in the country.

How does Graphic Designo innovate? 

Mohd Zeeshan: I think having innovative minds and business ideas is the key to our success in this industry. We opted and brought technologies and styles which were not common before in our country, and we are the only studio in India that makes the Anime style of animation. We have had opportunities to participate in many Anime movies and series.

We are still using various technologies and techniques in our work which is uncommon in our country, and we always try to think out of the box and love to participate in the most difficult projects. At Graphic Designo, we are very proud of having innovative technologies and ideas which make us different from the whole industry.

How the coronavirus pandemic affects your business, and how are you coping?

Mohd Zeeshan: COVID-19 did not affect our business as much since our business model has been online from the start and none of our clients comes from our country; therefore, we easily shut down the studio temporarily and shifted our whole studio to work from home, for us the most major changes were a decrease in casual office communication and chatting which we handle through various online platforms such as Skype, Drive, Asana, Meet.

Did you have to make difficult choices, and what are the lessons learned?

Mohd Zeeshan: Fortunately, we were always equipped and ready to handle everything online. Therefore, we did not fire any of our team members. That would have been the most difficult choice for us. However, still, we made some decisions and policies to keep the work going smoothly even after putting everything online, which was difficult for few members initially, but later on, everyone managed to take it. We all defeated COVID-19 smoothly, though we have learned lots of lessons from these hard times.

What specific tools, software, and management skills are you using to navigate this crisis?

Mohd Zeeshan: For communication purposes, we use Skype, Asana, Drive, and for transferring files, we use Wetransfer and Dropbox. With the help of these software, we manage our remote culture well, though we were using all of these software way before the pandemic; therefore, we were all familiar with them, and it was not difficult for us to rely on this software completely.

Still, we faced some problems while shifting our team from one project to another, as some were not familiar with the software used in the new project, and we were unable to give them personal in-studio training due to a lack of personal meetings. Still, somehow, we managed the situation, and gradually, the people opted for it.

Who are your competitors? And how do you plan to stay in the game?

Mohd Zeeshan: In our Industry, people/clients select the studio that provides the best output and offers the most affordable rates. Therefore, we are having competition from our studios since we keep providing the most innovative and greatest output, we will not face any difficulty towards our business’s growth.

Your final thoughts?

Mohd Zeeshan: The path of reaching here was not easy, but it was achievable, and we had a clear vision towards our goal from the start. We keep moving towards it sometimes it’s slow and sometimes fast, but we never stop moving. We fight all the hurdles, including covid-19. The whole world was not ready for this crisis, but when you put all your hard work and mind into a business, it helps the business survive in any crisis.

If you want to do something, start small, and keep moving towards your goal, you will face a lot of problems in your way, but keeping moving is the key to success, and this will be my advice to all startups and business youngsters.

Your website?

https://graphicdesigno.com/