How a Design Studio is Dealing with COVID-19 in Brazil

We talked to Renan Mayrinck of Imagine – Creative Studio on how they transform businesses and delight people.

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

Renan Mayrinck: My family is in quarantine since February when some suspects started popping up here in Brazil. I’m asthmatic so, this is a real danger for me.

Tell us about you, your career, how you founded Imagine – Creative Studio.

Renan Mayrinck: Imagine was a project idealized by Luana Pereira, a Designer and Illustrator from Brazil. She told me about it in August 2019 or so. We were in the same class during graduation when she told me about this project. I immediately volunteered to be part of it because I knew it had the potential to change the scenario we were told about in almost every class. Good design is not appreciated in this country. So, if you’re good, the foreigner will notice you before the locals. It’s a hard start for us because of this situation with COVID-19, but we are moving forward.

How does Imagine – Creative Studio innovate? 

Renan Mayrinck: We deliver design pieces for companies at a fair price while pointing stuff they can improve to make their businesses more attractive, something that is missing here in Brazil. They can use our creations on social media or as printed materials. We usually have printing stores that cover these services for small and medium businesses, but they are worried about printing and not about the quality of what’s printed. So we began showing the difference that a good design can make in any business, and people started noticing that too.

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

Renan Mayrinck: Actually, when we all started working in the home-office from day one, we have had no problems with our work. Our main problem was the Brazilian economy…Many stores closed because they were not ready for what was going on now, so we lost some clients. Further, our currency (BRL) is being devalued, so we had to adjust prices almost every month to keep up with our business expenses.

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

Renan Mayrinck: Usually, we talk with our advisors and networks in the same segment, and we try to follow the path that best suits our business goal. We had some hard choices, but most of them gave us great results as well. You just got to be patient and never follow the same steps as other people…What might work for them may not necessarily work for you.

How do you deal with stress and anxiety?

Renan Mayrinck: We usually don’t work on weekends, so we have about 2 days to deal with ourselves. We also promote group activities that can make us feel together, even when apart (like playing online games or video calls). We also try to take the day with as many jokes and funny moments as possible, so we start and end our days smiling. It works for us.

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

Renan Mayrinck: Our competitors are usually publicity agencies and some printing stores. Our plans for 2021 are basically growing alongside our clients and partners, proving that our method works and is not as expensive as other companies usually get when a client decides to move forward from a printing store design (that is the basic level most of the time).

Your final thoughts?

Renan Mayrinck: This will not be a message about business, but about our lives. 2020 was a rough year. We all suffered losses in many ways, but we should always try to focus on the good stuff. This year brought a lot of people closer together, even when away from each other. This proves that we can be close to the people we love and care about; even if we are not physically there, there’s always a way to be close to them. Find yours and use it. 

Your website?

imaginestudio.com.br