I don’t know if an ‘Editor’s Letter’ sounds pretentious but given the esquire esque layout I’m going for I’m going to overlook that... Simply put our community site is a referral only platform where our Collective of clients and creatives can consume curated content, find opportunities for collaboration and connect with like-minded enthusiasts. Whilst simplicity is the foundation which this brands aesthetic is built, as is this way with minimalism, this approach can make it much more difficult to convey all the detail behind a message. Things aren’t always simple and there is of course a story behind everything, I want to tell you mine, why I’ve created this platform and the vision on what I want it to become.

For as long as I can remember I’ve had a passion for luxury, fashion, design, and technology. Luxury and fashion stemmed from my mothers ‘dress to impress’ mindset and the value she put on luxury labels as something to work, aspire and long for, a mentality and belief that I still carry with me today. In my teens I expressed these passions through a tumblr profile, followed by my studies where I developed a deeper understanding for the business side of brands and the psychology behind advertising, marketing, design, and layout. I knew what my interests were, but I felt a sense of loneliness or embarrassment especially when it came to the likes of discussing womenswear.

I left school and pursued technology, through this I was fortunate enough to meet my now closest colleague, mentor and friend who founded the successful business we both work for today. He is one of the biggest influences and inspirations in my life and showed me what being passionate can do. The business is people centric and its success is through understanding the value of bringing like-minded people together. 

Whilst our company provides many opportunities, naturally a business of its type and industry has constraints in terms of design. In 2015 I realised my decision to not pursue art beyond school had left me with a void in my day-to-day life. I set up my freelance business, Stephen Cox Design, which combined my passions and gave me an output to express myself. I’m hugely proud of what I’ve achieved but old feelings of loneliness surfaced again and the want for connection was present. 

In my search to understand these feelings I discussed a meeting between a previous client and freelancer with my therapist, I soon realised that through my pursuits I’ve met an incredible network of talented and passionate individuals. 

SC&CO is an amalgamation of all my professional and personal experience. My vision is to build a company which removes many of the cons of being a freelancer, keeps the pros and provides an environment where our collective can thrive, feel valued and unlock new opportunities to work with progressive brands. We’ve set out initiatives which we believe will allow our collective to access value outside of the purely commercial benefits that other agencies offer. We want our members to feel part of something which delivers far more value not only to them but to clients and creatives alike.