Javi, did you always know you wanted to work in arts and graphics?
Not quite. My plan was to follow my brother’s path and become an industrial engineer but I decided to switch direction last minute – and it was one of the best decisions I ever made.
I’ve loved Art & Design since I was a kid. When I ask myself why, I realise it’s simply about creativity. I’m able to express myself through typography, color, form – and then expand that passion to other fields like music and photography.
I learnt the fundamentals of Graphic Design during my first degree studies and then learnt the art of Creative Advertising and Branding in my postgraduate studies. Here I learnt how to harness a company’s core values through visuals to create strong brands with purpose.
How did you start working with Urban Sports Club? And how have you contributed to the design of the new brand?
I started working with Urban Sports Club in 2019 as a freelancer in Barcelona. After 3 months I decided to move to Berlin to join the team in HQ – leaving behind Barcelona’s nice weather. Damn I miss that!
At first my focus was on giving graphic support to the Performance Marketing team with new assets and ideas for digital campaigns. I was simultaneously helping develop what in that time was the early stages of the new Urban Sports Club brand.
2 years later, once studios and venues had reopened after the pandemic, we were finally able to release the new brand. It felt like a great personal achievement.
It’s important to capture a brand’s personality when designing new assets. If that brand is a person, what kind of person would that be? In my opinion, we’re creating a brand that welcomes everyone and helps members achieve their goals through strong relationships and inspiring experiences.
What do you enjoy most about your job? And what do you enjoy least?
Something I like and dislike in equal measure is the process. Design is all about iteration, experimentation, trial and error… and I think that’s beautiful sometimes. But when there’s a tight deadline or small budget I also have to be pragmatic and forget about the fun, the process and the experimentation and complete the brief to the best of my ability.
“Fall in love with the process, and the results will come”
-Eric Thomas
Do you have time for sport amongst all these tasks?
Oh yeah! I’ve always enjoyed sports. When I was a kid I was goalkeeper of my hometown handball team. People say that handball goalkeepers are crazy and I can’t deny that statement. I love team sports because the bond you create with your team is so unique.
When I stopped playing handball I tried Padel, bootcamp, skateboarding, snowboarding, bouldering… Nowadays I play football in Berlin’s Startup League with Urban Sports Club colleagues which brings back that great feeling of being part of a team.
Which Urban Sports Club value do you feel most connected to and why?
All of our corporate values are important and I feel connected to all of them. But if I had to choose I’d say “Put yourself in the shoes of others” is the value I feel most connected to.
As a designer, I need to communicate with people in order to solve problems. I have to be able to understand, respect and appreciate other views to improve my work. Whatever I create, I must do so with the audience and their experiences in my mind.
