When
Miguel and Corina Flores worked for a design firm in Ann Arbor, there
was something important missing from their work lives.
"We
had no direct contact with our clients," says Miguel Flores. "We had a
go-between who was our creative director. We wouldn't even know what
color they wanted, and instead of having access to a client to ask [the
creative director would] just say, 'Try something different.'
"We decided we could do this and we would do it much better," he says. "And we decided to quit."
The married couple formed Flores Design Studio
in 2009. After building up a client base in Ann Arbor, Detroit and
Lansing, they decided to move their operations to the capital to be
closer to family, and because a majority of their clients happened to be
from Lansing. Fortunately for them, it turned out to be the best place
to give their business a boost.
"This is a very supportive community," say Corina Flores. "The Chamber, the Grand River Connection, LEAP and all these organizations are here working to help get businesses get off their feet."
Flores
Design Studio currently employs Miguel and Corina, but the couple is
already training Miguel's younger brother to be a future employee. The
family business is focused on client relationships and hands-on service.
"We
have direct contact with the client and we don't outsource work," says
Miguel Flores. The firm also hopes to soon branch their design services
into the mobile app industry.
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