NYCxDESIGN Special Event - The Business of Design: Entrepreneurial Thinking

As designers, we spot opportunities, solve problems, and create what doesn’t yet exist. For some, that drive goes well beyond client work, into side ventures, product ideas, and new revenue streams that expand what a design business can be.

In conjunction with the NYCxDESIGN Festival, we've assembled a panel of entrepreneurs who have done exactly that — managed side businesses, launched consumer products, and found entirely new revenue streams alongside thriving design practices. Together, we’ll pull back the curtain on what it really takes to build and run multiple businesses at once: the opportunities, the trade-offs, and the hard-won lessons that come from launching a product or service.

Whether you’re a studio owner thinking about diversification, an independent designer with a business idea, or just curious about what’s possible beyond traditional client services, this conversation is for you.

We'll have plenty of time for Q&A, discussion, and networking. Ticket price includes beverages and light fare.

Jesse Reed is the co-founder of Order, a design office developing brand systems for prestigious institutions such as MoMA, Apple, Google, Herman Miller, and Knoll. In addition to Order, he co-founded Standards Manual, an independent publishing imprint dedicated to the preservation of graphic design history, including the reissues of the NYC Transit Authority and NASA Graphics Standards Manuals. Jesse is also the CEO and a co-founder of Standards, an online tool for designing, managing, and publishing brand guidelines on the web, and launched the firm's type foundry, Order Type Foundry (OTF).

Meg Yahashi-Palmer is the Director of Operations at Young Jerks, an independent branding and packaging studio, and co-founder/COO of Weast Coast Games making heirloom quality tabletop games with a focus on immersive illustration and clever strategy. Overseeing the operational and financial health of both teams, she leads project management, production efforts, team resourcing, and vendor/client communication.

Pia Silva is the co-founder of Worstofall Design. She is also the founder of No BS Mastery where she teaches boutique agencies, consultants, and coaches the No BS Business Model for growing profitable solopreneur businesses. She is a TEDx speaker, host of The No BS Agency Podcast, former Forbes contributor, and author of Badass Your Brand and Scale Solo.

Moderated by Patrick Durgin-Bruce, Founder and Creative Director of Ultravirgo, a strategy and design studio that helps mission-led brands expand their impact.

Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.

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Host or Publisher Spark Design Professionals