The world’s most valuable brands aren’t just known. They’re indispensable. They simplify decisions, command loyalty, attract talent and justify a premium. Behind them is design. Not as veneer, but as a system of thinking and doing that connects purpose to product, experience to emotion, and ambition to growth.
I help companies use design as a strategic force to accelerate transformation, increase market impact and create the conditions for exponential growth. This is about shaping how people feel, think and act across every touchpoint, every channel, every moment. When done right, design doesn’t just make things better. It makes companies unforgettable.
With over two decades of experience working across health, mobility, consumer tech and culture, I lead multidisciplinary teams to deliver business-critical change. From brand systems and product platforms to physical environments and connected services, the work is designed to scale commercially, operationally and emotionally.
The work has included everything from autonomous mobility systems and AI-powered healthcare platforms to immersive brand experiences and global product launches. Each project was built to equip leadership teams with clarity, capability and the tools to create long-term brand value, commercial advantage and cultural relevance.
“James is one of the greatest creative minds I have had the privilege to work with. He does not feel limited by medium and his creative storytelling is equally compelling in print, digital, video or as a physical installation. His attention to the smallest detail is inspiring and I respect that in him enormously.”
KELLY BENNETT
CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, NETFLIX
“For over a decade at Apple, I oversaw the design and development of some truly iconic pieces of software. In all that time, and in all my time since, I’ve not come across anyone else with the raw talent, and the ability to focus it, that James possesses."
PETER NELSON
FORMER DIRECTOR OF ENGINEERING, APPLE
1995 - 2015 / AKQA
I left university before graduating when I was twenty-one and, together with Ajaz Ahmed, Dan Norris-Jones and Matthew Treagus, co-founded AKQA. Under my twenty-year creative leadership, we grew to become the world’s most respected and awarded digital design company. With over 2000 skilled practitioners, in 14 offices around the globe, my team and I consistently produced pioneering work for clients including Nike, BMW, Warner Brothers, Audi, Heineken, XBOX, The Coca-Cola Company and Disney. Campaign magazine in the UK, and AdWeek in the US, have both named AKQA ‘Agency of the Year’, an honour the company has been awarded more times, on both sides of the Atlantic, than any other agency in history.
In 2012, the advertising and media network WPP bought a majority stake in AKQA for $540M, at the time making ours the most valuable company ever for its size and age.
2015 - PRESENT / DEATH MACHINES OF LONDON
I departed AKQA in 2015 to pursue a variety of projects through my creative studio AtelierStrange, while also founding the acclaimed custom motorcycle brand Death Machines of London. Death Machines have since been featured in GQ, Highsnobiety and Esquire, have had a Netflix show made about them, and have been awarded Motorcycle of the Year for three consecutive years by the international architecture and design magazine DesignBoom.
2016 - 2019 / NATIVE
In December 2016, I was invited to join the renowned product and experience design company Native as its Chief Creative Officer. With a heritage in product and industrial design, Native now encompass all areas of user experience. Made up of an ensemble team of engineers, materials scientists, researchers, experience designers and strategists, Native have been responsible for some of the world’s most iconic products including The Zeppelin speaker for Bowers & Wilkins. In 2018, the team and I were awarded Gold by the IDSA for our Autonomous Vehicle for Ford, a hugely ambitious project which saw the creation of over 100 patents for both digital and physical interface design.
2019 - PRESENT / ADVISOR
Now continuing to consult through my studio, I advise Fortune 500 companies, start-ups and academic centres of excellence on the strategy, application and execution of holistic innovation solutions. In addition to this, I work with international universities & academies in mentorship of students and future business leaders.
KNOWLEDGE SHARING
As a speaker on the subjects of leadership, creativity within business and the principals of holistic design, I am honoured to have been invited to talk to the world’s most forward-thinking organisations and educators. As a visiting professor my aim is to bring real-world experiences, insights and radically different perspectives to the students, and faculty alike, so they are inspired and enabled to more clearly define and accelerate their careers.
