TDD Origin Story
In 2012, I was facing an issue: I was a couple years out of university and I could only find in-house design jobs. I'd had enough of those, but I wasn't sure how to break into the industry and get one of those cool, creative agency jobs.
I knew there were design agencies and studios in Toronto but I didn't know where to find them. I found it frustrating: there had to be lots of professional designers in the city, why was finding them and their offices such a challenge?
I had already built a lot of websites and knew how to code, and I was looking for another portfolio project. So I decided I would build a small site listing all the design studios and ad agencies I could find, so anybody else like me could also use it.
Finding these businesses was still a challenge: this was 2012 and the internet was still growing. Businesses didn't really have social media presences yet. But it occurred to me: working designers must know other working designers. So using my very small LinkedIn network, I creeped second and third and fourth degree connections to see where they worked and who they knew.
Before long, there was a list of about 100 agencies in my spreadsheet. I told some friends what I was working on, and they started sending in lists they’d compiled for themselves so I could add their finds to my list too.
I built the website and called it the “Toronto Design Directory” because it was apt and very literal. No need to be fussy about it, this was a practical tool and an explicit name would help with SEO.
In 2014 the TDD went live, and I took a step back. This was a fun project and it felt good to help people, but I wanted to focus on work and building my design career.
I told a few folks about the site, and the reaction to the TDD was quiet for a few months — and then it blew up. Suddenly the website was getting lots of traffic, people were emailing me with new additions all the time, and industry professionals wanted to meet and talk about the project.
I found the reaction intimidating, I had only been working for a couple years at this point and I wasn't ready for so much attention from my peers! But this reaction also proved to me that I could have a good idea, build it, spread the word, and people would come. This would shape the future of the TDD, and my own career, for years to come.
Over the years, I started adding events to help or connect with people in other ways, starting with art shows, then portfolio reviews, design talks and more. It became clear pretty quickly that while the industry could feel very intimidating to a newcomer, most people were eager to help each other and share their knowledge. You just had to give them an opportunity to do so.
There have been a lot of challenges, experiments, and learnings over the years. The TDD has survived until today with a lot of work, late nights, and creative thinking.
As my own career has grown and evolved, I’ve faced more challenges and had lots of questions that were hard to answer. The TDD continues to be a place for me to solve problems and build solutions for my fellow creatives, just like I've done fromthe beginning.
Margot Trudell
Directory & Founder
Toronto Design Directory
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