Facilitator spotlight: Maja Grcic & Ángel Figueroa Mayordomo
It’s not uncommon to find people who work with their spouses (I’m guilty of it myself), but Maja and Ángel take it up a notch: it’s hard to know where one stops and the other begins. Inseparable both in work and in their spare time, they take on projects at the intersection of brands and business during the day (and sometimes well into the night), and host the monthly Brand The Change meetups in Amsterdam, all while co-parenting a teenager and finding the time to go diving together. The self-described turtle-and-rabbit-duo open up about their practice.
AM: Maja, you have a background in international relations. Ángel, you have a background in aerospace engineering and business consultancy. What drew you into the branding space?
Á: For us, it was a slow and smooth transition. In retrospect, we were ‘practicing’ branding long before we started reading or learning about it. I suppose it was the realisation that if you want to get the message across you need to learn to communicate effectively. And to do that, you need to first decide exactly what you want to do and what you want to be known for. And secondly, find simple words to communicate clearly. It’s that search for clarity and how to communicate effectively that took us into the branding world. And since then, we’ve come to see branding as an integrated part of any business development.
AM: What type of projectS do you take on?
M: Ángel is crazy about sports. I love good food. And both of us have a soft spot for startups and the concept of getting an idea to take off. So we naturally found ourselves drawn to working with starting companies in the food and sports industries. They are usually teams of 3 to 6 people who already have a product and first paying customers but struggle to attract a wider audience. They all have one thing in common: they are struggling to write a clear story about who they are or what they do and, in most cases, it’s because they don’t truly understand their target audience.
AM: CAN YOU SHARE AN unexpected joy or challenge YOu’ve found in building brands for change?
M: It’s the pace. We love the speed at which small companies make decisions with a learn by doing attitude. There is very little fear of failure. You try and, if it doesn’t work, you try something else. We both worked at large organisations in which many people have a say when it comes to decision-making, with all the politics that come along with it. On the other hand, small companies have the challenge of prioritising actions based on a limited budget. It’s hard to see many good ideas stay parked because branding is usually at the back of the line when it comes to budgeting.
Maja loves it when a plan comes together.
AM: How do you collaborate as a team? What are your individual roleS and where do you overlap?
M: It’s a lot of giving and taking. We are one of those cases in which opposites attract. We have no issue disagreeing with one another and go at it until we find a way forward. We like to see ourselves as a rabbit and a turtle. I’m the rabbit, always on the move, doing a million things at the same time. And Ángel is the turtle, doing things step by step, structuring the chaos. I’m stronger working top-down, starting from the bigger picture, understanding the customer and what they need. Ángel is stronger working bottom-up, focusing on the details, making sure all business pieces fall into place.
Angel in action at a Brand The Change meetup in Amsterdam.
AM: You are both certified BRAND THE CHANGE trainers. What’s your favourite tool FROM THE METHOD and why?
Á: Brand Thinking Canvas 1. We see it as an improved version of the Business Model Canvas, with which we used to work a lot. It tackles all relevant topics a starting company should have clear, with the added value of putting the brand story at the heart of business design. It binds all three elements in one canvas: what you plan to do, how you plan to do it, and, what is usually left out, why you want to do it.
AM: Can you share one facilitation tip?
M: Be comfortable with not following the methodology to the letter. Have a clear goal going into a workshop, but be open to adapt your plan to one that suits your client best. Not everyone is the same, and it doesn’t matter what you do during a session as long as you end up with the information you need to start building a strong brand.
Maja and Angel with their clients, Meet Jack.
AM: Who is your dream client?
M: It’s funny, had you had asked six months ago we would have given you a detailed description of an ideal client we had never met. But now we can give you a name: Meet Jack [ed: a thriving Dutch B2B and now B2C young jackfruit brand]. The thing with building a brand is that it’s more than a concrete deliverable. It’s an ongoing process that takes hard work, and a lot of patience to bring to life. Meet Jack has all the elements we like in work: great product, inspiring mission, and a committed team that doesn’t take no for an answer.
AM: You are currently working from Bali while your son is attending Green School. I love how you live life to the fullest. i imagine you have a plan for where you’d like to be in two or three years?
We hope to be two or three steps closer to building Tortuga Heaven. A hidden gem on a tropical island, surrounded by jungle and close to the ocean. A small resort with a few villas where you can enjoy good food made of ingredients grown in our organic garden and take your mind off things with exotic activities like diving, rafting, or yoga. It would attract entrepreneurial minds looking to escape the hectics of everyday life and, once re-energized, look to get challenged on their brand or business basics.
AM: I’m booking my ticket now :-)
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Event photos by Miriam Brunke
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