”Especially the less obvious companies offer opportunities” argues Tini Groen
CMD LWD alumnus Tini Groen adds a little extra color to this world. If not with her striking locks or colored last name, then with the creative expressions she makes for NelfKoopmans. That she doesn't work at a creative agency is a conscious decision. Tini talks about the choices she made after graduating from CMD LWD.
When Tini was still a greenhorn
First back to basics. What did Tini actually think of studying at CMD LWD? “Within the study program, a lot was possible, which also made it diverse. I followed various minors, of which I really recommend the minor concepting to follow once. There I got to know myself better, which I still benefit from. I also studied abroad for a semester, in Lisbon. To be honest, I had quite a romanticized image of that in my head. Yet I would recommend every student to also go abroad. Because even though my experiences were not only positive, I learned a huge amount from it.”
The battle with perfectionism
During the minor concepting Tini discovered a love for analogue photography. “I suffer from perfectionism, which could really get in my way in my digital photography. With analogue photography not everything always has to be sharp and noise in your photo can actually be very positive. This worked very liberating for me.”
During her graduation Tini combined this love with an old love: literally. For the clothing and vintage store Hardwerk Fogeltje she developed a social media strategy. Including execution, she shot all the photos analogously. “Hardwerk Fogeltje still uses my strategy, I think that is very cool to see.” She didn't hold her graduation presentation at school, but in the store. “This gave my self-confidence an extra boost. It felt mainly like a nice moment to show what I had made, there was less pressure on it.”
Passed with flying colors – or should we say passed colorfully? – for your bachelor. And then?
“When I graduated in 2018, there were few jobs. I worked as a freelancer for a while, among other things at Brain Fuel. But I quickly noticed that working as a freelancer didn't suit me well. That's why I chose to continue studying, in September 2019 I started a cool master” Tini went for that completely. Where she previously had side jobs as a student, she now focused fully on her studies for a year. “Forty hours a week I worked on my master. It was tough, but I learned so much from this. I could do my graduation at an agency, Opgevallen. This went so well from both sides, that they offered me a job after I got my degree.”
But, unfortunately the future is not always rosy. “Still within my probation period my time at Opgevallen came to an end. Corona had hit like a bomb there and many customers backed out. However much they wanted it, they could no longer offer me a job.” Tini didn't give up and applied like crazy. With success.
Showing your true colors
“You don't have to work at Coca Cola to have a super cool job.” says Tini laughing. “I used to think that too, but precisely the less obvious companies offer cool opportunities.”
“My graduation supervisor from CMD LWD called me, Michel van Galen. He said 'Joh, I have a very nice challenge for you. Don't be scared, it is a paint factory.' I thought to myself 'Geez, a paint factory? Seriously?' But still I was curious.” Tini went for an interview at NelfKoopmans and was hired. “This company inspired me so much! I thought; here you can make such cool expressions! I said yes, super unexpectedly. My father said 'Huh?! New job?'”
“The freedom and possibilities that I get at NelfKoopmans, make this really the ideal job for me. My creative ideas are appreciated here, that is important to me.”
Tini Groen
It is no secret that purple is her favorite color. In 2018 Tini Groen graduated. If this colorful lady is not instagramming, she likes to lie on the couch with a good book and her cat Nuka. Did you know that she is now also a client at CMD LWD? We think that's cool.