Our origin story
As I sit at my desk on the western edge of Tokyo, I reflect on a journey that started before social media. It’s a story of 5 international moves, countless visa processes, an international marriage, the birth of a child, and the Great Recession.
In 2005, I had just graduated from CSULB in interior architectural design and was living in Southern California. Though I had caught the attention of several firms, I had my sights set elsewhere.
Two years prior, I had met Tak, an international student from Japan studying product design. After months of friendship, we became a couple (now married and business partners). At the time of my graduation, Tak was preparing to return to Tokyo, so I raised my hand eagerly and embarked on what would become a life-changing journey.
Faced with the reality of trying to get a job in a country whose language I barely knew, I ended up teaching English and started taking on freelance graphic design jobs here and there.
Meanwhile Tak worked designing the McDonald's Happy Meal toys for the Asian region. It was definitely a trip to have kids come into their English lessons with the toys he'd created, the downside definitely being the primary objective of the toy: to entice kids into addiction of one of the most unhealthy "foods" on the market.
After 3 years in Tokyo, we found ourselves back in Southern California. Tak quickly landed a multilingual job in new business development. On my end, the interiors industry had tanked with the Recession, my portfolio was stale, and job interviews weren’t clicking.
While I moonlighted as administrative assistant & unofficial graphic designer at a small law school, Tak & I took matters into our own hands. We saw that with the economic climate, businesses needed to promote themselves more than ever. We founded a graphic design business, Studio Aiuto, meaning “help” in Italian describing our mission to provide creative solutions to help businesses facing a wavering market.
With no clients, Tak suggested a pitch that changed everything. I secured a meeting with the Environmental Commission of the City of Encinitas (our then home) and pitched rebranding their hallmark event, Encinitas Environment Day, pro bono. It was this job that launched us forward. We can track so many of our clients & contacts back to that singular event.
Quick aside:
When you're trying to break into a new space, even if you're experienced, don't be afraid to do something for free. There are opportunities that I passed by our of arrogance that I still regret to this day. If you choose well, and are intentional about your goals, the returns can be exponential.
Back to our story.
For the past 15 years, Tak and I have built brands worldwide for businesses invested in pursuing aims that benefit our society.
We’ve worked in California, Japan, Hawaii & now are back in Japan (my 3rd time). Both of our careers are intertwined with universities; I was an instructor at UCSD & Tak is a communications specialist with Rikkyo Univ’s American football team. We have a daughter in elementary school and have embraced the dance between work & family (iykyk).
With the combination of evolution in business, in ourselves, family, etc., it became increasingly apparent that a change was imminent.
As we're nearing the end of 2024, we’re launching the 2nd volume of our creative studio with a new brand and a new name: MIMMA. Inspired by the Japanese words miru (to see) and mimi (ear). Our goal is clear: It's all about you. We see you, We hear you, and we’re making brand strategy and design more accessible than ever.
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