The Missing Skill in Design? Tim Perry on Why Commercial Awareness Matters

In this live episode of Why Design, recorded at Blue Garage, I sit down with Tim Perry, a seasoned innovation and design strategy consultant with over 20 years of experience helping creative businesses sharpen their commercial edge.

From scaling consultancies and steering agency acquisitions to guiding in-house teams at major brands like Nokia, McLaren, and Logitech, Tim shares his unique perspective on the intersection of design and business.

We explore why designers and design consultancies often overlook commercial awareness, how consultancies can rethink their positioning in a crowded marketplace, and why commercial skills should be developed just as early as creative ones.

Tim also talks about the common challenges agencies face around business development, the tricky art of saying “no,” and why sometimes less is more when selling your services.

If you’re a designer, consultancy owner, or anyone working at the crossover of creativity and commerce, there’s plenty of actionable advice here.

Key Takeaways:

🔹 From Designer to Strategist – How Tim transitioned from packaging design to leading agency growth and design strategy at Nokia and beyond.

🔹 Lessons from Scaling & Selling – Insights from scaling Web deVlam and overseeing its sale.

🔹 The Positioning Problem – Why agencies often dilute their message by trying to be everything to everyone.

🔹 Specialism vs. Niche – Why focusing your positioning is key, but you can still take on a variety of work.

🔹 Building Commercial Confidence – How designers can develop business development and negotiation skills early in their careers.

🔹 The Power of Networking – Tim’s take on why generosity and curiosity are vital in client-facing roles.

🔹 The LinkedIn Effect – How LinkedIn can help creatives spark conversations and create business opportunities—when used with authenticity.

🔹 Negotiation Lessons – Tim’s real-world story of a high-stakes negotiation that almost went wrong, and what it taught him about holding your ground.

Resources & Links:

🌍 Connect with Tim Perry on LinkedIn

🎯 Check out Tim’s Commercial Skills Training (includes free sample courses)

🎙️ Learn more about Blue Garage – A creative community space in Lewisham, London.

👥 Join the Why Design community! Sign up for upcoming events, online huddles, and workshops: teamkodu.com/events

🔗 Follow Chris Whyte on LinkedIn – linkedin.com/in/mrchriswhyte

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