Who the hell is Hollie Sanderson?

We’re chatting with members of the DixonBaxi studio about what makes them who they are. From the professional to the personal, nothing is off limits here. We caught up with Hollie Sanderson, one of our designers, about graduating during COVID, her love of Converse and moonlighting as a Sainsbury’s online shopper. Here’s the rest of that conversation:

Who are you and what do you do?
Ello ello, I’m Hollie, a designer here at DB. My life motto is to fake it ’till you make it and, so far, it’s working out pretty well.

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What’s your story?
I’m a North Eastern gal getting lost in the big smoke. A 2020 covid graduate from Nottingham Trent with my hopes and dreams being quarantined away, I started out as a Sainsbury’s online shopper from 2-6am then internships 9am-6pm. It wasn’t a fun time I’ve got to say. Until somehow DB scooped up an overtired, 23-year-old last year and launched me into the design world. And what a ride it’s been so far.

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What are you working on right now?
Right now I’m working on a streaming brand like no other. It’s going to be pretty mega. But you’ll just have to wait and see.

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“We design to solve problems, to provoke and make people feel something. Whether that’s joy, surprise or curiosity. If it gets a reaction or, even better, creates action, then of course it can [change the world].”

Describe your working style in 3 words.
Chaotic, resilient, curious.

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Tell us about some of your interests. What are you into?
Since I only moved to London less than a year ago, I’ve created a bucket list of all the places to eat, drink and go, all whilst dodgily trying to navigate and explore the streets of London. I’ve swapped the Yorkshire Dales and my walking boots for walking the streets of London in my trusty Converse. But you can mostly catch me window shopping, catching up with friends or finding an excuse for a fancy dress party.

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Do you think design can change the world? How?
For sure. We design to solve problems, to provoke and make people feel something. Whether that’s joy, surprise or curiosity. If it gets a reaction or, even better, creates action, then of course it can.

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If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?
Just one? Access to free health care.

What’s the last song you listened to?
Fred Again – I found you.

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Why do you do what you do? What motivates you?
I love that I get to immerse myself in a different world other than my own. The potential impact I can have, and with every day it’s something new: a new problem to solve, a new challenge to push myself out of my comfort zone. But maybe 1% of it is still that chip on my shoulder to prove the people wrong who said I couldn’t make a career in design or that it was a waste of time.

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What’s your definition of good design?
Fuck, I wish I thought of that.