Experience

AlphaGraphics South Charlotte

• United States
• Printing Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Design & Prepress Specialist

  • Dec 2021 - Present

  Preflight incoming files and prepare for offset or digital printing Analyze customer files for fonts, images, integrity and printability Make plates for offset printing Consult with customers to help create designs, logos, etc. Use mailing list management software Preflight incoming files and prepare for offset or digital printing Analyze customer files for fonts, images, integrity and printability Make plates for offset printing Consult with customers to help create designs, logos, etc. Use mailing list management software



Starving Artist Records

• United States
• Entertainment Providers

• Graphic Designer, Writer/Editor, Social Media/Marketing Consultant, Creative Strategist

  • Jan 2004 - Present

  Some projects I am proud to have completed: • Carolina Raptor Center (Environmental Designer, Event Promoter) - Designed signage for "A Day in the Life of a Raptor Hospital"​ exhibit, assembled team to fabricate and install in 2014 - Conceptualized, cross-platform promoted, and event managed "Hooterfest"​ benefit concerts (2012 - 2015) • Private Individual (Editor, Photo Editor, Graphic Designer) Providing text and photo support and creating novel-style cover art and print layout for a personal memoir. • City of Belmont (Graphic Designer) Created a reader-friendly, eye-catching design for their Annual Drinking Water Quality Reports. • Music Department at Episcopal Church of Our Saviour (Graphic Designer, Writer, Promoter) Created press release and promotional designs for charity concert series and advised staff/volunteers of best practices for concert promotion. • Shutter 16 Magazine (Editor, Graphic Artist, & Photojournalist) Contributed to founding structure of workflow and infrastructure by implementing the use of GoogleDrive apps and training the staff to use them. Created the majority of the graphics for the magazine through 2013. Generated web content such as articles, photographs, and videos; and edited copy for my and others'​ articles, formatting for a Wordpress environment with plug-ins. Contributed to the social media promotion for magazine content. • Tremont Music Hall (Graphic Designer, Social Media Assistant, Street Team/Marketing Assistant) • Tattermask (Graphic Designer, Social Media Strategist, Digital Content Manager, Writer) • Market Insights (Photo Editor, Graphic Designer) • Creative Loafing (Photojournalist)



Innovate Graphics

• Printing Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Graphic Designer Production

  • Jan 2020 - Dec 2021

  • Designed graphics per customer specifications and manually imposed for a variety of printers • Operated toner presses (Ricoh, Konica), large format printer (HP360, Gerber Edge), roll and flatbed cutting devices (Graphtec, Gerber), laminators, and other finishing devices to complete orders • Communicated with customers and sales reps via email and telephone • Maintained production records using Google Sheets and paper work orders • Created and maintained email marketing campaigns • Managed social media presence on Facebook and Twitter until Jan 2021 • Designed mail pieces for marketing initiatives



Lake Printing & Design

• United States
• Printing Services
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Pre-Press Specialist / Graphic Designer

  • Feb 2021 - Jul 2021

  Designing custom graphics to customer specs. Setting up files for digital or offset printing including imposition using Fiery and InDesign software Creating plates for offset press Operation of digital toner presses Printing and finishing signage and large format items using wide format printer, roll-fed vinyl cutter, and flatbed cutter/router tool Designing custom graphics to customer specs. Setting up files for digital or offset printing including imposition using Fiery and InDesign software Creating plates for offset press Operation of digital toner presses Printing and finishing signage and large format items using wide format printer, roll-fed vinyl cutter, and flatbed cutter/router tool



Shutterfly

• United States
• Software Development
• 700 & Above Employee

• Multiple Roles

  • Nov 2013 - Nov 2020

  Aug. 2015 - Nov. 2020 - Print Production Analyst (Contractor) Part of Shutterfly Business Solutions' Pre-press team - analyzed and corrected PDF documents for optimized printing using Adobe Acrobat Pro and PitStop 13 for manipulation. Oct. 2015 - Jul. 2017 - Production Designer (Contractor) Provided customer-focused "designer review" service for the Tiny Prints and Wedding Paper Divas premium brands including photo correction/optimization, text proofreading, and layout/typesetting customization. Recognized in March 2016 as "Employee of the Month" for consistently exceeding aggressive team goals for speed and accuracy. Joined social planning committee in December 2017 to help organize team celebrations for co-workers and promote camaraderie. Appointed to department technical team for troubleshooting/correcting file irregularities in March 2017. 2017: (Feb. - Jun.) - Selected to work on a project with Research & Development to create test files for a state-of-the-art new printing technique. 2014 - Q4 (Oct. - Dec.) Production Designer during fourth quarter seasonal rush. 2013 - Q4 (Nov. - Dec.) Customer Service - Provided customer care and technical/design assistance for customers of the Shutterfly brand in an inbound call center environment for the 2013 holiday season. Consistently met or exceeded expectations for call volume and customer satisfaction, garnering several specific compliments from customers. Contracted through Corporate Employment Resources, Inc. (Corestaff) and Adecco



JLS Trading Co

• Charlotte, North Carolina Area

• Creative Project Manager

  • Jul 2017 - May 2019

  • Photographed and edited optimized product photos for Amazon listings using a Nikon D750 DSLR camera, Lightroom, and Photoshop (CC) • Designed packaging for private label brand items and other printed items • Hired design & modeling contractors, providing training and feedback for sales-focused image optimization • Wrote strategic, keyword optimized sales listings to sell products on Amazon using primarily Scope and Merchantwords for SEO keyword research • Contributed ideas for new products to sell, possible process improvements, and sales/packaging improvements for existing items • Created new product listings using Amazon Seller Central platform • Coordinated celebrations for employee life events, work anniversaries, birthdays, and holidays



Cedar Fair Entertainment Company

• United States
• Entertainment Providers
• 700 & Above Employee

• Carowinds Graphic Artist / Sign Shop Technician

  • Aug 2011 - Jun 2015

  08/2011 - 06/2015 - Sign Shop Graphic Artist I designed and/or printed signage for use in the park including: - large format printed banners and signs - magnet signage - cut vinyl lettering/numbering for rides - Facebook graphics and photos - web site photos and graphics - architectural illustrations, and more I mixed relevant stock photography and graphics with my own photographs and original graphics, occasionally receiving pre-made designs from our corporate headquarters' Planning & Design department or third party advertisers. I produced most in-park signage using a Roland VersaCAMM SP540i wide format printing/cutting machine and used many finishing techniques such as laminating, corner-rounding, or installing grommets before signage installation. The effectiveness of my eye-catching, easy-to-read designs paired with my quick turnaround times garnered greater sales volume for multiple departments at Carowinds, while the efficiency of my work and my creative problem solving has saved tens of thousands of dollars for the park. **Previous position held at Carowinds:** - Applications Technician (Information Systems Dept.) 01/2007 - 11/2008 - Provided Carowinds employees with desktop computer support (including high-level executives and sometimes visiting Cedar Fair corporate executives), printer and peripheral device support, and Windows-based cash register support. Assisted corporate Information Systems personnel with server troubleshooting via telephone. Wrote training documents for department procedures and trained two new employees in 2008.



Rico

• United States
• Sporting Goods Manufacturing
• 1 - 100 Employee

• Indigo Press Operator

  • Sep 2010 - Aug 2011

  Operated a HP Indigo press for a variety of substrates. Matched Pantone colors for sports team logos according to professional sports leagues' standards. Performed routine maintenance and intermediate level troubleshooting and repairs on the printer. Also used Roland CAMM1 desktop sign maker and FlexiSign to cut vinyl window graphics. Operated a HP Indigo press for a variety of substrates. Matched Pantone colors for sports team logos according to professional sports leagues' standards. Performed routine maintenance and intermediate level troubleshooting and repairs on the printer. Also used Roland CAMM1 desktop sign maker and FlexiSign to cut vinyl window graphics.