Zest in Squamish ✴︎ A Decade of Creative Juice

Ten years ago, I moved to Squamish with my dog, my creative skills, and a gut instinct that I could build something here that didn’t exist yet — a creative agency that could hold its own against the big firms, minus the inflated egos and stacked fees. I came to build something honest.

I created Zesty Brands — not because I love limes (though I do), but because I knew the brands that win are the ones with flavour. Substance. Bite. I knew people were searching for a boutique Vancouver branding agency grounded in quiet confidence, strategic depth, and honest creative.

How the Zest was Won

Before I moved to Squamish, I spent a decade at another creative agency— I learned a ton, but the work didn’t feel true to my soul. Projects felt rushed. Meetings felt performative and I didn’t resonate with the noise, the hierarchy, the constant push for more clients without asking if the relationship felt right.

And so, I left the big-brand boardrooms for bike trails, river bends, and long quiet stretches of thinking. I wasn’t trying to “start an agency.” I just wanted to do excellent creative work with really great people.

Since then, I’ve quietly built a reputation for crafting brands that don’t just sit pretty on a shelf — they move product, earn loyalty, and feel alive. From early-stage startups with wild ideas to established names looking for a pulse, I help brands find their edge, distill their story, and show up in the market like they mean it.

Intentional Work for Intentional Brands

Branding and packaging design grounded in clarity and care

Zesty grew organically but intentionally. No investors. No scaling plans. No profit forecasting. My intention was to do great work, have meaningful collaborations, on projects I could be proud of — and see what happens. Over time, the brands I helped shape started landing on shelves at Whole Foods and Costco, across Canada and the U.S.

I’ve worked with founders at kitchen tables and CMOs at Fortune 500s. The best successes always come from the same place — real people who are clear on what they stand for — or at least open to figuring it out. What I do is branding and package design, yes. But also: pattern recognition. Distillation. Strategy. Mostly it’s a lot of listening… asking the right questions, and then deciding what the brand needs to say — and how to say it well.

Zesty wasn’t built to scale

A Squamish-based creative studio with space to think

I like working closely with clients. I like watching their excitement build and seeing their products travel far and wide. I like being able to bike in the morning, come back with a good idea, and know I can sit down and build it. My process is organic, and my calendar isn’t crowded. That’s on purpose.

Being creative in Squamish makes that easier. It slows the pace. Clears the mind. Reminds me that good work doesn’t come from being busy or chasing — it comes from being present. Most of my best ideas still arrive somewhere between the forest and the sketchpad.

What’s changed (and what hasn’t)

The Industry’s Louder Now. Zesty is Not.

There’s more noise in the retail and consumer space than ever before — more AI, more mimicry, more tactics, more pushy marketing dressed up as “authenticity.”

But underneath it all, the thing that hasn’t changed, people are still looking for:
Something that feels real.
A product that solves a problem.
A brand that knows who it is.

When a brand is grounded in truth — when it’s actually clear on who it’s for, what it offers, and why it matters — people respond. They don’t need to be convinced. They just feel it.

Brands that are aligned from the inside out become magnetic.
They don’t have to shout. They don’t have to chase trends.
They just work — because they’re honest.

That’s how I’ve always approached Zesty.
Stay clear. Stay nimble.
Make something real, and let it speak for itself.

You don’t need to shout the truth.
People feel it.

And when everything around you speeds up,
the advantage is knowing how to slow down — and listen.

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If you’re building something worth caring about — let’s chat about your brand