Credentials
Credentials & Experience
Gia Watkins — Senior Creative Designer & Art Director
Senior creative professional with extensive experience in graphic design, art direction, branding, digital design, and marketing communications. My background spans B2B and B2C markets, working with clients ranging from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies.
Through my independent creative practices, I collaborate with businesses, marketing consultants, and agencies to develop effective visual communications across digital and traditional media. I combine creative thinking, marketing knowledge, and hands-on execution, managing projects from initial concept through final production.
Experience
Professional Experience
Get Noticed / GiaGraphics
Founder & Creative Director | 1980–Present
Independent creative practice providing branding, graphic design, website development, and marketing communications.
- Brand identity, logo design, and visual identity systems.
- Website design and development using WordPress/Elementor and Wix.
- Digital marketing materials, email communications, presentations, and marketing collateral.
- Art direction, creative concept development, and visual storytelling.
- Collaboration with marketing consultants and agencies on client projects.
- Creative project management from concept through final production.
- Integration of AI-assisted tools for concept exploration, image development, and creative production.
Specialized creative practice focused on historical storytelling, commemorative publications, and heritage displays for private country clubs.
- Design and production of hardcover commemorative books, anniversary publications, and editorial materials.
- Development of historical exhibits, murals, display graphics, and anniversary identities.
- Integration of archival photography, historical research, typography, and editorial design.
- Management of publication and exhibit projects from initial research through final production and installation.
Selected projects include Brooklawn Country Club’s 125th anniversary and Mill River Country Club’s centennial celebration.
Clients
Selected Client Experience
Corporate & Consumer
AT&T, GE, Pepsi, Reader’s Digest, Labatt, James River Corporation, and others.
Pharmaceutical & Healthcare
Care Technologies — direct mail design and marketing communications. Additional experience in over-the-counter pharmaceutical marketing.
Financial & Professional Services
Branding, website development, and marketing communications for financial institutions, professional services firms, and B2B organizations.
Results
Selected Accomplishments
Martha Stewart Wedding Invitation Collection
Developed and marketed a licensed invitation collection, generating $700,000 in first-year revenue.
Webpax
Created a turnkey direct mail marketing product generating $2 million in revenue within nine months.
Artvelopes
Developed and launched a branded packaging venture generating $220,000 within six months, subsequently sold.
Axel Andersson Award
Recognition for excellence in direct mail design.
Capabilities
Creative & Technical Capabilities
Design & Art Direction
Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Acrobat; brand identity, typography, editorial design, image editing, and print production.
Web & Digital
WordPress, Elementor, Wix, HTML, responsive website design, email marketing, and digital communications.
AI-Assisted Creative
AI image generation, creative concept development, visual exploration, and production enhancement.
Project Management
Creative direction, client collaboration, vendor management, prepress, and production oversight.
Education
University of Florida
Bachelor of Design in Architecture
You might not need me today. But wouldn’t it be nice to already know me when you do?
Let’s get acquainted. Tell me a little about your work and the clients you serve, and I’ll tell you a little about how I work. No pitch. Just a conversation.