Katie Cadwell
Multiple designers or career changes detected for this name. Profiles below are grouped by studio association.
About
Co-founder and creative director of branding studio Lucky Dip. Her practice brings together design, copy and motion.
Biography source ↗Biography checked
Coverage mentioning Lucky Dip
Co-Founder, Creative Director, Advisor, Designer
In their own words
I do believe this is a phase. AI creative is the shiny new invention. The market is being flooded with work that looks identical, devoid of personality.
It’s not fair to make you wait for a new hire in order to progress.
Today it feels like AI might be a reason not to. Who knows what might happen tomorrow as a deterrent.
We shy away from the truth, which is, we are in sales. And to sell, sometimes you need cold, hard stats.
The truth is, in-house projects have unbelievable value. You just need to position them slightly differently to agency ones.
We’re sold the story that we have to be obsessively passionate about our work. But that’s a lot of pressure.
Creatives have a mid-life crisis every five years.
Our power has always been in the ability to curate.
I’m sure this demand for content will slow, and the tide will turn to quality over quantity again.
Agents absolutely have their place, but I agree you can build traction without them. It’s about investing your energy in the right places.
Articles & interviews
- Creative Industry Will Adapt to AI, Not Collapse
In this Creative Career Conundrums advice column, Lucky Dip co-founder Katie Cadwell addresses a senior designer's anxiety about AI destabilising creative careers. Cadwell argues that the industry has historically adapted to technological change, and advises creatives to use AI for repetitive tasks while strengthening ideas, strategy and observational skills. She also identifies a growing consumer preference for visibly human, craft-intensive creative work.
- Why Junior Designers Get Stuck With Grunt Work
In an instalment of If You Could Jobs’ Creative Career Conundrums, Katie Cadwell addresses a junior designer who has spent four years largely handling presentation touch-ups and reports. Cadwell argues that entry-level grunt work is valuable but that prolonged stagnation is unfair, advising the designer to request specific opportunities, contribute ideas proactively, and ask directly why they are not being trusted with broader work.
- Start a Studio Before Comfort Stalls Your Creative Growth
In this instalment of If You Could Jobs' Creative Career Conundrums, Lucky Dip co-founder Katie Cadwell advises an aspiring founder considering whether to start a creative studio amid AI adoption and economic uncertainty. Cadwell argues that external deterrents are constant, startup overheads in creative work can be low, and remaining unchallenged poses a greater risk than taking the leap.
Coverage mentioning It’s Nice That
Author
In their own words
Sadly, there is an assumption that just because you’re a great creative, you’ll make a great manager
Focus on bettering the studio output overall
The classic phrase that someone has ‘too much experience’ really shouldn't be relevant in our industry.
Articles & interviews
- "Most Creative Directors Lack Management Training"
Katie Cadwell’s weekly Creative Career Conundrums column for If You Could Jobs explores what it means to be a creative director without a team to manage. She discusses how leadership and management skills can be developed even in small teams, offering practical advice and resources for creatives looking to strengthen their directing abilities. The piece highlights the gap in management training among creative directors and encourages proactive learning.
- Breaking Monotony Without AI: A Creative Approach