Wendy is the Design Manager at Empire Life and has an extensive background with in-house design management. With over 18 years of experience, she’s led several design rebrands in the technology and financial services sectors.

She is a graduate, advisory board member and mentor for St. Lawrence College Graphic Design Program. Wendy’s formula for successful in-house design is to deliver high quality, award-winning work AND exceptional partnership with internal stakeholders.

Born and raised in Switzerland, Stüssy originally was a banker by day and graffiti artist by night. He soon realized that his passion for the creative needed to be nourished and decided to go back to school to become a graphic designer. He is a graduate of Humber’s Advertising and Design program, a former Senior Design Director at Haughton Brazeau and a founding principal of Forge Media + Design. 

Brent is principal and co-founder of Fusion Design Group. Fusion is a creative studio focused on corporate communications and visual identity for organizations of all sizes. Brent is a firm believer in asking “why” in the pursuit of creating design solutions that will work for his clients. And that “fun” should always be an integral part of the creative process. 

Saskia is an Assistant Professor at OCAD University, is a practicing graphic designer, artist and researcher.

Currently her theoretical and empirical research focuses on methods for nurturing intuition and tacit knowledge in undergraduate design students through experiential, transformative, and Writing in the Disciplines learning theories. Her personal design projects focus on the intersection of design and craft, and involves a cross-pollination between various disciplines including painting, printmaking, typography, and sewing. Presently she is using stitching to explore different techniques of disrupting design conventions, and to inform the practice-based approach of her teaching methodology.

Jennifer is founding Partner at Design de Plume, a firm in Sudbury. She is heavily involved in the Sudbury Design Society as a past VP and current Treasurer. She graduated from Cambrian College’s Graphic Design program and has a degree in Communication from Laurentian University.

Big-picture thinking, strategic solutions, happy clients, the discovery of young talent and the privilege of teaching, mentoring, judging and otherwise contributing to the professional design industry are what continue to motivate Wendy after two decades at the helm of Gravity Inc. 

Norm is Creative Director and founder of Toronto-based Truth and Dare (formerly K9 strategy+design). Norm has 25 years of experience in creating strategies to execute branding and publication design for many of Canada’s small independent to large multi-title publishers and countless entrepreneurial, professional and non-profit clients with their design and communications opportunities.

Megan is the founding principal and creative director of Field Design Office and a design educator in Toronto. Partnering with clients in entertainment, arts, hospitality and corporate sectors, she specializes in creative direction and design spanning branding, packaging, film titling, wayfinding and exhibition design–most notably for Stefan Sagmeister and Jessica Walsh on The Happy Show in Toronto.