Who You Know: Maisie Benson & Claudia Aggett

Claudia & Maisie founded the 'Happy To Help' initiative with the desire to help 3rd year creative students navigate their way through graduating in a global pandemic. It's a 'flying flag' for creatives to show they are willing to give their time & energy to help students with advice, portfolio reviews & life after graduation.

At Who You Know, we're all about connecting creatives & highlighting opportunities so we had to speak to Maisie & Claudia about their new initiative & spread the word! Read on to find out more.

Full name: Maisie Benson Full name: Claudia Aggett

Hometown : Leicester Hometown: Burnley, Lancashire

City of residence : London City of Residence: Bristol

Tell us a bit about each of you

MB: I’m Maisie, a Senior designer at B&B studio. I grew up in Leicestershire, the city furthest from the sea in the UK and so when I was deciding on which university to go to I basically just looked around the coastline - Eventually deciding on Falmouth, one of the best decisions I’ve made! I did a degree in graphic design and during this completed a number of internships at different agencies, these led to a job at B&B when I graduated which is where I’ve been since! I love working with brands with purpose and I think this has given me a challenger mentality, always looking for potential ways that design can solve a problem.

CA: I’m Claudia, a Junior Designer at Fiasco Design and a recent graduate from Falmouth University. Even though I have spent the last 3 years studying in sunny Cornwall, I am a northern girl at heart, originally from a small town in Lancashire, but I am now based in the beautiful city of Bristol. I have had the opportunity to work at some incredible agencies including Design Bridge and Pearlfisher. Since graduating, just 7 months ago, I have spent time at Supple Studio and Fiasco Design, where a 4 week internship turned into a full-time position, which is something I am humbled by, given the current climate!

I strongly value the importance of spreading kindness & creative courage and being a helping hand to others – I hope that as my career progresses, this is something I can continue to champion.

Why did you start the 'Happy To Help' initiative?

MB: Happy to Help came about through a very quick Twitter exchange between Claudia & I, Claudia had graduated in the summer and knew the disruption COVID causes first hand, whereas I was seeing it from an industry perspective. I was hearing of more and more agencies unable to take on internships remotely and I knew how important these were to develop as a designer. Current 3rd years have really been hit extremely hard by COVID, it has disrupted nearly a year of teaching at a really crucial stage of their studies and meant that the usual connections to industry are nearly non-existent. We thought there had to be a way to let students know that the industry is still here to support them, and so came up with Happy to Help!

CA: We went from initial exchange to announcing the ‘Happy to Help’ initiative in just 24 hours. We just knew how important this could be to soon-to-be graduates!

Tell us how people can support 'Happy To Help'

MB: It’s very easy to get involved, If you find either of us on instagram (@_maisiebenson, @designby.claudia) or twitter (@MaisieBenson, @claudiaAggett) you can download the assets from our bios and help fly the flag for the class of 2021! We’ve created a list on twitter of all the creatives offering support and we are sharing instagram handles via our profiles on Instagram. We’re also suggesting adding a flag emoji into your bio to signpost that you’re willing to help students.

CA: We appreciate that not *everybody* wants to become full-blown flag flyers. If that’s the case, we’ve found a solution! Simply add one of the flag emojis next to your profile name for a subtle, yet effective signpost that you are still ‘Happy to Help’ 🏴

What was your experience as a creative student in the pandemic?

CA: I think we have all seen that things can quickly change in a short space of time, which makes my experience of being a student feel like a long time ago! Never did I imagine that this would be a conversation I would be having a year on, but here we are and this is why something needs to be done to support the next year of COVID graduates.

This pandemic has definitely thrown a few spanners into the works, but it has also brought along a number of positive twists and turns that I did not expect. At first, like the rest of the country, everything seemed very unknown, which brought along its own stresses and worries on top of an already intense final year. However, that being said, it has provided me with a number of great opportunities. Some fantastic initiatives have kick-started within the year of the pandemic, including Not Only but Also, Proper Talk, The Arena and Design by Women - all platforms which I have gained inspiration, friends and support from.

With everything moving online, COVID-19 gave me a much-needed push to speak up more, communicate with other designers, overcome that dreaded ‘imposter-syndrome’ and share my work. By doing so, since graduating, I have been lucky enough to get to know and build some fab friendships with not only fellow graduates, but also designers from across the country. Without doing so, I would not be where I am right now or have started ‘Happy to Help’ with Maisie!

The creative industries have been hit hard by this pandemic, if there was one piece of advice you'd give to students set to graduate this year, what would it be?

CA: I’ve spoken about it a lot, but I would advise everybody (even more so now!) to get on Linkedin and Twitter - both have been the most rewarding platforms to date and ultimately found me a job. Conversations may start off as a simple hello, but you never know where that might lead! In short, get your name known, be present, be proactive, but most importantly be yourself!

MB: I think just not to worry! I spent a lot of my 3rd year panicking about not being able to get a job when I graduated (and this was when there wasn’t a global pandemic!) So I can only imagine how they must be feeling. But the industry will bounce back and there will be jobs again. We also understand that it hasn’t been a smooth ride for them and that this may have an impact on their portfolios. Whilst you do learn a lot at uni, you learn a whole lot more when you graduate! And companies are always looking for potential and someone willing to learn and grow.

How has 'Happy To Help' been received so far?

CA: The response has been so positive, we have been going through the week with massive smiles on our faces knowing that so many people are already benefiting from initiative. We’ve had a number of messages from current students saying that this is exactly what they were looking for and it is warming our hearts - a beacon of light when we need it most!

Fingers crossed ‘Happy to Help’ can be of some help for those who need it most - it’s all about plucking up the courage to drop that first DM. It’ll be worth it, I promise!

MB: It’s been so well received! Claudia & I were totally blown away by the amount of creatives offering time and support for students. We’ve also had some lovely notes from students thanking us and saying how much it means to them, which has been so lovely to hear. I really hope students take advantage of the opportunity they’re being given, and aren’t too shy to ask for advice!

We understand 'Happy To Help' was made with design students in mind but do you hope to expand across the wider creative world?

MB: We’d love to expand across the creative world. Anyone offering to help students is welcome to join our list and then it will just be a case of students finding the creative relevant to them to ask for help! We’ve already had lots of support from illustrators, animators and photographers so hopefully soon there’ll be someone for every discipline!

CA: As Maisie said, we’ve already had support from illustrators, animators and photographers. This is really crucial, as I know from friends and peers that not everybody’s ‘design journey’ is as straight forward as completing a design degree and then becoming a designer. There are many different paths to take even within design, whether that’s beginning a career in strategy, copywriting etc. Something that ‘Not Only but Also’ promotes really well.

‘Happy to Help’ should hopefully give graduates a straight-forward way into roles which they might not have otherwise been exposed to!

Anything else you'd like to add?

CA: I would just like to say a massive thank you to everybody who has shared, commented, liked and supported ‘Happy to Help’. You will be more help than you know!

You can download the 'Happy To Help' assets here: https://we.tl/t-kxrKGybkpa to help fly the flag for the Class of 2021!