Ever wondered how a simple passion for design can evolve into a thriving studio?

Here's my story of how I got started.Hi, I'm Chris, the founder of Halaska Studio, and today I want to share the journey of how my love for design began and eventually turned into something I could have only dreamed of.

My fascination with design started back in high school, where I found myself captivated by creating engaging websites and animations for my gaming clans. It wasn’t just a hobby; it was something I looked forward to every day. My high school teacher recognized this passion and nurtured it by tailoring my assignments to design-related tasks. One vivid memory is of lugging an old 18-inch CRT monitor—those things were HEAVY—home so I could experiment with Linux. I was just a scrawny kid, but that monitor felt like it weighed a ton.

At that point, I hadn’t even realized that design could be a career. I was on track to become a chef, something I enjoyed and a way to follow in my dad’s footsteps. But then, during a visual design class, my teacher, Mr. Jordan, asked if I’d considered design as a career. I remember thinking, “I can get paid for doing my passion?!” That question changed everything for me.

Back then, digital design wasn’t widely recognized. Most courses focused on traditional print design, advertising, or 3D animation. However, I knew digital was my calling, so I enrolled in the only private college I could find offering something even remotely related. While studying, I realized I was already ahead of both the students and the teachers. I often found myself teaching others how to use Illustrator, Flash, and Dreamweaver.

Coming from a modest background, I vividly recall the anxiety of seeing my dad stress over bills, new shoes, and other now seemingly insignificant items. His philosophy was to find a stable job, stick with it, and work your way up. But I knew that wasn’t my path.

Instead of following the conventional route, I took a leap of faith and started freelancing right out of college in a brand new industry, with no work experience to show for it. My dad always reminds me, “Chris, you always seem to do the opposite of the advice I give you, but you always land on your feet.”

Thankfully, that risk paid off. I managed to secure work creating digital banners in Flash for some creative advertising studios. This gave me enough of a portfolio to land a job at Ogilvy, a leading global advertising agency. In under two years, I went from Junior to Senior Art Director. However, when the work became repetitive, I moved to a smaller independent agency called The Monkeys (formerly 3 Drunk Monkeys, who amusingly had to rebrand to win an alcohol brand as a client).

Whenever I felt unchallenged, I’d move on, taking short gigs at different studios to understand how digitally focused teams operated. Eventually, I went to the "client side" at Australia’s top bank, CBA, where I gained exposure to user experience design, rounding out my skillset.

Then, Google approached me to join their Sydney team, where I worked in a startup-like environment, designing products for emerging markets and later on Google Photos. After six years at Google, I felt that familiar itch again. I wasn’t as challenged as I once had been, so I decided to explore the world of crypto by joining the web3 gaming startup, Immutable.

All these experiences exposed me to different processes, industries, markets, and roles. I was intentionally absorbing everything—both what to do and what not to do—not just in design, but also in the business side of things, always with the hope of one day doing my own thing.

That day finally came. After years of working for others, I felt ready to start my own studio, where I could tailor the process to the client, not the other way around. Starting Halaska Studio was a calculated risk, one I wanted to take before having my son (who, at that time, was planned but not yet a reality).

I took the first step by securing a three-month contract, allowing me to build my studio profile. I officially launched as soon as that contract ended at the start of December. Within the first week, I signed two clients, and within 60 days, I had 13 active clients and $180K in monthly recurring revenue—a monumental start!

Since then, I’ve been optimizing my hiring processes and brand offering to address the challenges I’ve encountered, and we’re still going strong! Building Halaska Studio has been challenging but incredibly rewarding. I’ve created something I’m proud of, something that gives me the flexibility to spend more time with my newborn son while continuing to deliver the high-quality work I’ve always aspired to.

To anyone thinking about starting their own venture, my advice is simple: take that step. The most rewarding moments in my career have come from taking a scary leap into the unknown. From a teenage boy designing for fun to a founder still designing for fun, my journey has been fueled by passion, growth, and integrity.

If you're interested in learning more about how we approach design, how we run the business, or if you just want to follow along for inspiration, make sure to subscribe and follow us on our socials.

Thanks for reading!