Meet James Harper

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to James Harper. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi James, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.

Optimism is easy as long as you allow your mind to realize how lucky we are to be alive at the same time as: Neil Peart, Ice Cream, Coffee, WKRP in Cincinnati, nature, Tom Robbins and David Sedaris books, tacos, Motorhead, plaid pants, Indian food, vinyl records and turntables, A Tribe Called Quest, waterfalls, Japanese whiskey, fine writing instruments, bowties, Godzilla movies, R2D2, Mango Nectar, Burnt Ends, The City of Lost Children, bicycles, libraries, Tina Fey, Loch Ness, croissants, Michael Jordan, Jessica Hische’s typography, and peanut sauce.

I feel very sorry for people who dwell on the negative, but in some cases, it’s not their fault at all. But there is amazement in the world constantly that we witness every single day. I try to incorporate that into everything I do by not burning bridges, and I post about that a lot. What do you want to be remembered for? I want people just to think I was nice to them.

That being said, I’m in a lot of different business types and I wish I had time for everyone, but my time is limited and very valuable. So I try to help who I can when I can, but I do get overwhelmed, so I disappear into the “head down, work mode.” Then it’s all about me and my client or customer.

Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?

Lately, a lot of my focus is on ice cream. Delicious ice cream. As CMO, I thought mostly I’d be working on increasing media, pushing social and since we’re a cluster of locations in the St. Louis Metro area, then we’d be developing hyper-local cross promotional campaigns with brands we love in the part of the country we love. As I’ve grown into the position, I realize it’s so much more and so much more fun. Learning from all departments of our business, the CFO, the ice cream production lead, the director of retail operations, the brand curator, Human Resources and trying to tell the best stories to break through the clutter in the limited outgoing communications we can effect. Learning about food trends to help tie the flavors we create with the seasonal and promotional calendar. And learning so much from a seasoned CEO who founded the brand ten years ago, who is a wealth of knowledge on the brand and the business. She’s done it all, and boy does that help me learn.

It’s fascinating because all of this business stuff surrounds an absolutely delicious product. I’m using some of these learnings for our up-and-coming coffee business, Plaid Coffee. And in this world, it’s about creating an experience. We don’t have ice cream shops with plastic furniture, and harsh lighting. We have marble countertops, beautiful lighting, Parisian-inspired artwork and custom wallpaper. We are a true ice cream parlor. And that’s a really fun place to be from a positioning perspective.

And at the same time, continue to keep my design skills relevant, and help agencies I work with build their portfolios into something better by offering my years of experience.

That’s what I’ve got cooking.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

I’ve recently provided similar advice in another interview so I’ll try to make this one different.

1.) Be a sponge. Look at great work. Find inspiration at unusual places. If needed, alter your mind. You cannot work, design or manage in a bubble. I recently heard a story of a friend who was being told by fellow workers who have been there a while said, “Well, we’ve always done it this way.” NO ONE should be proud of that. If there are improvements that need to be made, you should have already made them, and you need to learn or research to realize there are better methods. I’m very pro-change. You have to be in a climate where technology changes at an insane rate. Reading, research and I hate to say it, but scrolling, all help lead you to better ways to do business and life.

When I was teaching, I tried to have my students put their work next to pro-designers work, so they can literally see the difference. You have to look at it that way, not to belittle their work, but to show them where they need to be. Also, so they can see what methods the designer used to get to great design. The more you see and research, the closer you become to an expert.

2.) Embrace modern pop culture. You cannot be a marketer without the knowledge of what’s important to people culturally. What songs are people listening to? What are the most popular colors this year? The smart, older brand managers and CMO’s will hire knowledgeable, multi-generational agencies to fill the void and help them align their brand with current cultural narratives. I’ve had some huge wins on programs involving cultural alignment. What does your customer like? What are they watching? I can’t pretend to know it all, that’s why I pay attention to friends at all ages and all demographics, so I can get tidbits of info to look up. I follow tons of designers on social, the good ones post great content from a trend perspective as well as from a production perspective.

One of my colleagues posted a very funny post that had a very, very relevant nod to a celebrity in it and it out-performed everything we’ve done for the year. When I saw it I totally wondered, “will this work?” It did.

3.) Don’t forget to create something for yourself. Have a soul.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

I love collaborating with people who embrace both new tech and tangible, physical things to connect with people as well. While a brand can succeed digitally, there has to be physical things to connect people with. Sometimes they are experiences. Other times they are a beautiful, real thing they can hold and cherish as well. Those are the things I really like creating.

I try to cross-promote with cool businesses in the world of ice cream, coffee, design, publishing and more. I have helped people develop brands from spirits to food. I’ve worked with service related businesses as well, and we still create physical things that bring their world into the tactile space as well to make a meaningful connection. I love helping people achieve their dreams in any way. That’s what I like doing, making your life dreams real. So yes, hire me for work.

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Image Credits

Photo of Ecotherapy by Geoff Story

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