We believe creativity makes the world a better place, but first, we need to make the industry a better place.
The Arena is a not-for-profit creative community and mentoring platform. We’re on a mission to arm aspiring creatives with the tools, inspiration and confidence needed to kickstart a creative career, live up to their potential and eventually lift as they climb, holding the door open for the next generation of talent.
The creative industries are notoriously challenging to break into. Why?
Because no one talks about the hard sh*t!
Getting your foot in the door isn’t just about having connections - it’s about accessibility, representation and having the confidence to know your worth.
But what if we could break those barriers down? What if we didn’t accept the way it was because that’s the way it’s always been?
How we’re changing that...
Mentoring
We’re rethinking the traditional mentoring programme and approaching it more like speed networking. You shape the relationship to best suit you. Meanwhile, our mentees step into industry knowing they have someone in their corner, who they can turn to for support.
Resources
If you ever need some reassurance, just take look around you. The Arena community it filled with creatives who are committed to leaving a positive mark on this industry.
Community
Everything we wish we’d known sooner and the myths that deserve to be de-bunked. No trade secrets are gate-kept here!
Spotlighting
Shining a light on the inspirational figures of today and tomorrow!
Whether it’s a story of roaring success or epic failure, there are so many important lessons we can learn from our eachother.
Our story
From a humble lockdown side project to an almighty community of changemakers
If you cast your mind back to the summer of 2020, The Arena was an online media platform designed to showcase some of our creative heroes, established and emerging alike.
The value and inspiration we had from hosting those interviews felt greedy not to share, and so those creative heroes morphed into fantastic mentors and the rest is history.
Today, The Arena platform is an essential tool to kick-start creative careers, packed with resources, insights and mentoring opportunities.
The Arena is run by Dom and Lauren, alongside their own creative careers in the world of design and marketing. The two combine their years of experience in the creative industry and passion for levelling the playing field to bring about lasting and meaningful change for emerging creatives.
The team
Dom Edwards
Dom dreamt up the idea for The Arena with design husband Ben Thornton after graduating from Portsmouth University in 2018.
Witnessing and experiencing some of the struggles first-hand, he became determined to help as many people as possible pursue a creative career.
Six years in, working as a brand designer and freelancing with some of the UK’s leading creative agencies, Dom now has all the experience he needs to start making real change.
Lauren Archer
Without Lauren, The Arena could have remained just another nice idea. Lauren’s background in creative project management turns our big thinking into real-world impact.
A proud multi-hyphenate, by day Lauren works in marketing with a public sector consultancy, but by night she writes and records vocals for some of the biggest names in drum and bass.
You could say spinning multiple plates is her thing!
The board
The Arena is supported by a wonderful board of advisors, coming from all corners of the creative industry. The board’s role is to provide feedback and guidance on our business plan, shaping our long-term strategy and informing our day-to-day activities.
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I’m a senior designer with 5+ years experience in branding and packaging. After growing up and studying in the North, I moved to London to expose myself to more design opportunities. In my time here I’ve had the pleasure of working at Taxi Studio, Bulletproof & now B&B Studio.
Across the three agencies, I have worked with some incredible directors, but I rarely meet female or Northern creatives in leadership roles, so I began mentoring to expose young people from more diverse backgrounds to design and help budding creatives find their first stepping stone into the industry.
Beth Harrison
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As the Brand & Culture Manager at Taxi Studio, an independent design agency, I passionately advocate for people and culture, from empowering young people starting their careers, to creatively positioning our brand globally. Transitioning from 6 years as a designer, whilst leading the support for young talent and championing our culture, my passion for belonging and career development became integral in carving my own path.
Liv Beresford-Evans
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Managing Director at creative agency, Wildish & Co. and Co-founder of vegan challenger brand, Notorious Nooch Co. Awarded Guardian Leader of the Year. Nominated Great British Entrepreneur of the Year. Previous mentor for SEIDs, Prince's Trust and SCA. Previous House of Genius panellist. Previously led wins for Red Bull, Sony, Bumble, O2, Pepsi and many more.
Sam Fresco
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Callum is creative person who also happens to be a strategist. He currently works at advertising agency Iris, with a specialised understanding of how communities interact with brands and culture on social.
He is passionate about representation in the creative industries and previously ran a successful non-for-profit and now runs a creative networking group to help solve these issues. He also loves travelling, cooking and keeping fit as well as hardcore punk, doom metal and hip hop.
Callum Ritchie
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Luke Tonge is a graphic designer, lecturer, and events wrangler in Birmingham. He specialises in identity & editorial work for brands, agencies and charities. As co-director of Birmingham Design, the organisation responsible for the Birmingham Design Festival & Gather, he spends much of his time focused on the creative community.
Luke Tonge
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Vini is the Co-Founder of One Good Reason, an independent Strategic Branding & Design Agency based in London. A Creative Director originally from Brazil with more than 20 years of experience, Vini has worked with global clients and some of the world’s most iconic brands. Vini's keen eye for detail and craft has seen him become a lettering and typography specialist, with experience in creating, refreshing, and crafting some of the world’s most iconic logotypes.
Vini Vieira
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Ellie founded Lim, a global studio of visualisers. She believes everyone should work in a visual way and in the future it’ll be the norm. Today, she and her team of problem solvers, creators and storytellers are leading the way in visualising business content for global brands such as Mars, Airbus and L'Oreal.
Ellie’s career began in 2013 as a freelance graphic recorder and she quickly understood the power of visuals to help teams get stuff done.
When she’s not leading Lim, Ellie enjoys sport and is a keen triathlete.
Ellie Chapman
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Natalia is a seasoned Creative Leader with over 12 years of experience, known for seamlessly blending design with management and business operations. With a background in graphic design and a proven track record of building and leading multidisciplinary creative teams, shaping global operations, and optimising efficiency within design-centric businesses, Natalia brings a wealth of experience and a practical approach to every challenge.
Driven by a vision of uplifting creative individuals and businesses, Natalia is dedicated to mentoring designers through various mentoring schemes and platforms.
Natalia Zuluaga Lopez
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Jay's a Manchester-based graphic designer, copywriter, poet, and spoken word artist. In the past, he's worked with Spotify, Ace and Tate, Serotonin, and now at PHMG. He's a huge fan of visual identities, typography, and loves working with words. Jay's also the founder of Fuse; a collective uplifting underrepresented creatives.
Jaheed Hussain
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I’m Ollie. I’m an award-winning Conceptual Illustrator, based in Manchester, UK. Illustration makes me tick. Though it’s not the only thing that does. I’m a lifelong cardiac pacemaker patient. So, whilst I put my heart into drawing, it gets help from time to time. I like my work to hinge on a strong idea, diluting complex topics into digestible visual concepts, helped by a splash of colour.
I’m passionate about playing an active role in trying to make the illustration industry a more accessible place for emerging talent and I’ve also been involved with organisations such as The AOI, D&AD, The RSA, and Agents For Change.
Ollie Hirst
What now?
If any of this resonates, has struck a nerve or maybe even fired you up to make a difference – good.
That means you’ve you’re in the right place.