Jonathan Ford: Focus, ideas, and a growth mindset
Jonathan Ford is the founding partner and group creative director of Pearlfisher, the studio known for creating brand desire and long-term value for clients like McDonald's and Jim Beam. Under his lead, the team has won multiple Design Effectiveness Awards and a Gold Cannes Lion. His approach blends sharp strategy with bold creativity - and a refusal to slow down.
How he runs his day
- 07:30 - Swim or fitness to set the pace.
- Morning - High-focus work: oversight, decisions, direction for Pearlfisher.
- Late morning to early afternoon - Meetings and collaboration to keep ideas moving.
- Late afternoon - Personal creative projects or other ventures; regular check-ins with CEO Jason and co-founder Mike.
- Evening - Out 3-4 nights a week for culture, sport, friends, and family. Zero appetite for becoming a Netflix zombie.
He lives at full throttle but builds in refuels, health checks, and pit stops. As he puts it: keep roaring forward and ask, "Yes! and next?"
Early career: the '80s, a crash, and a reset
Ford started in 1984 at Michael Peters & Partners during the Reagan-Thatcher boom. The firm grew fast, became the Michael Peters Group, and launched him to New York as a young creative director. Then came the crash. By 1991, bankruptcy ended that chapter and taught him more about failure than success ever could.
From the rubble, Sterling Design began, but his compass shifted. In 1992, he returned to London and co-founded Pearlfisher with Karen Welman and Mike Branson. That move defined the next three decades.
Solving the real challenge: change and people
The toughest problems aren't briefs - they're people and change. When business is too easy or too hard, growth stalls. The answer: commit to a growth mindset and inspire it in others.
Ford sees himself as a better agency runner than a detail-obsessed designer. His tactic: take the falcon's view - step back, scan the whole field, then swoop in with ideas that build belief and momentum. If energy still stalls, enforce. Leaders are paid to lead with vision and flow.
Proudest project: The Pearlfisher Garden
For their 25th anniversary, Pearlfisher entered the Chelsea Flower Show - a first for the studio. The idea, inspired by the Ama (Japanese women free divers), spotlighted ocean fragility and the 9 million tons of plastic dumped each year.
They built an underwater illusion using cacti and succulents. A deep blue wall of plastic bottles showed how much waste enters the sea each second. It became a crowd magnet and media hit - and won a Gold Medal. Why did it work? A clear, original idea, beautifully delivered.
"Designer of futures" - what it actually means
Every designer makes something new. The real question is the scale and consequence of that newness. Does your work make the future better or worse? That's the responsibility.
Design Intelligence: iQ x Ai = Di
Ford doesn't fear generative AI. He guides it. Human imagination sets direction; AI amplifies it. That's his formula: iQ x Ai = Di - Design intelligence.
If you want practical training to sharpen AI workflows as a creative, explore curated programs at Complete AI Training.
What the industry must improve
Grassroots inclusion and workplace diversity in the UK still lag. Progress exists, but it's mostly white and grey-haired - his words, about himself included. He's also seeing a quiet ageism creep in.
One fix: more intergenerational exchange. He cites a Turkish entrepreneur friend whose simple questions and proverb-led insights were "pure gold." Programs like the DBA's mentoring scheme help, but lateral experience across ages is just as valuable.
Haller Foundation: design put to work
Ford served as trustee and then chairman of the Haller Foundation, which advances ecological and community-led solutions inspired by Dr René Haller's work. Projects in Kenya help regenerate land and build resilient livelihoods.
In 2010, Pearlfisher created HALLER FARMERS - the first sustainable farming app - to scale practical know-how to smallholder farmers everywhere. The charity continues under the leadership of his daughter, Chloe, and founder Louise Piper. Learn more at the Haller Foundation.
Tools he swears by
His inner compass: hands, eyes, and gut.
Dream brief
Redesign British Airways' identity. He believes the current mark is a relic of politics from the early '90s and now mirrors a cost-cutting, post-pandemic sameness. The opportunity: keep the recognizable cues while renewing what a national carrier stands for - progress, vibrancy, independence, inclusivity, and authentic pride.
Struck (2023): art, nature, and time
Ford challenged himself with a slow, handcrafted printmaking project built around a historic Cedar of Lebanon struck by lightning in 2011. He reclaimed sections of the trunk and printed its rings on large-format washi paper to visualize time - for the tree and for us.
The work traces a century inside the wood's rings, linking personal history, English landscape, and cultural shifts - all through a single fallen giant.
Advice to his younger self
"Great work breeds great work - you're only as good as your last job." Aim for the moon; hitting the stars is a good day.
On voice and leadership
Never let anyone speak for you. Don't borrow voices or identities. Your authentic voice - backed by clear ideas, conviction, and originality - is your strongest lever. Use it.
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