Even if you’re not familiar with the name of poet, author and illustrator Giles Andreae, you’ll certainly recognise his work - with the likes of Edward Monkton, cheeky Purple Ronnie but also for the fantastic and positive brand Happy Jackson!
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Happy Jackson is all about bringing a little bit more awesome into everyday life!
The company make all sorts of cool, colourful stationery, desktop stuff, sweets and accessories – as well as uplifting official Calendars and Diary, which is all designed and developed personally by them with fun captions and vibrant colours. We caught up with Giles and asked him a few questions:
How did the Happy Jackson brand first come about?
Since working together on Purple Ronnie, Heather and I had always wanted to create a brand between us. We knew we wanted to use big colours, bold patterns and playful editorial, so we sat down together to see what would come out. The pug logo, which I (Giles) had made a sketch of just before we first met, seemed to embody the vibe of the brand, so we worked things outwards from that.
What inspires you when creating new product captions / designs?
It’s pretty simple. We always ask ourselves “what would I REALLY want to say about this product? What would make ME smile?” It’s that human connection that people identify with. The “oh look, that’s just want I feel about this too!” feeling.
Happy Jackson is known for its fun, positive and uplifting captions, what is your most popular phrase / caption?
Well, “QUEEN OF AWESOMENESS” has worked very well for us across a variety of products, but there’s also quite a cheeky caption on a certain yellow pencil case that has been a real bestseller. I’ll leave you to look it up yourselves…!
Who, do you think, is HJ’s biggest celebrity fan?
Paris Hilton recently put one of our products up on her Instagram. Is that a good thing or not?!
What has been your most interesting / favourite experience in your job to date?
We’re working on a range of candles at the moment with one of the UK’s premier fragrance houses. Putting on white coats and sniffing secret potions in their special laboratory was fun – if pretty surreal. It was like something from a sci-fi movie! What piece of advice would you pass onto anyone looking to work in Licensing? I think the most important thing is that you really have to have a singular, unique voice or aesthetic. So don’t copy what anyone else is doing – find your own groove!
You can get your official 2019 Happy Jackson Square Calendar, Slim Calendar and A5 Diary now with FREE UK delivery at danilo.com and select high street stores!