"Where Are They Now?" is a series where we reconnect with former Prime Studio interns and discover the career paths they've forged since their time with us. In this episode, we chat with Lindsay Mannix, who interned with us back in the Spring of 2005.

What have you been up to since your internship at Prime?

After my almost 5 years at Prime (I promise I wasn’t an intern the whole time…), in 2009, I moved to Germany for a year, as part of my husband Jason’s typography fellowship with the Alexander Von Humbuldt Foundation. It was there, living in Munich, that we discovered that we could work together without risk of injury, or dissolution of marriage. We partnered to develop the typeface, Enzian, and shortly after decided to start our own design studio in Washington, DC with the help of our dear friend and now longtime partner, Gavin Wade. Polygraph, an editorial and brand studio, was born in 2011 and we’ve been at it ever since. In it’s most basic form, we work closely with cultural institutions and hospitality clients to tell their stories.

What are some of your memories of your time at Prime Studio?

Honestly, the word that sums it up is Growth. I learned so much from my time there. I was incorporated into the team wholly from my first days as an intern and Stuart just kept giving me more responsibilities from there.

Early on, I was invited to participate in a focus group at Unilever as a representative designer/participant. I guess I was opinionated enough, because we ended up working with Unilever for several years after that. 

I remember one day Stuart ran out for a bit and the phone rang. It was someone from Reebok… They asked how many people the studio had. That was the only question. I answered ‘2.’ Then they hung up. Stuart never let me live it down. 

Did your internship at Prime influence your path?

Probably more than any other professional experience. My time at Prime (again, a lot longer than internship) taught me so much about running the business I/we wanted to build. Being a small team and having to wear many hats gave me the confidence to at least go for it and see if it could click. While I’ve moved on from industrial design, there is so much that transfers over–good project management, treating staff with the same respect you want for yourself, and weeding out the good clients from the bad (before you sign). 

What are you currently working on or most excited about in your career/life?

I think we’re all reeling on a few levels right now (AI, markets, etc.), so victories feel small in comparison. But I’m really proud of the work our team does to help companies big and small tell their stories in meaningful, genuine ways. We’ve partnered with Smithsonian on their annual reports and special projects for a few years, and it’s always inspiring to connect with people doing incredible work and pulling it to the forefront. For example, we just did a photoshoot in Hawaii focused on native Hawaiian quilting–telling the story of the craft and how these incredible women are teaching others to carry on the tradition. We’ve also been working with chef Eric Adjepong, a chef who became a household name after a stint on Top Chef, open his first restaurant, Elmina, in Washington, DC. It’s an introspective representation of who he is as a chef, and our goal was to reflect his Ghanaian and West African heritage with sincerity and authenticity. 

Do you have any advice for design students looking for an internship now?

I have a lot of empathy for students and new grads trying to get your foot in the door. The best candidates have a great mix of talent and range, so the biggest differentiators come from personality and desire to learn. 

A lot of candidates try to bill themselves as a ‘complete package’ - which is BS, or at least self-aggrandising. Knowing your skills but being clear about what you want to learn, and why our studio is where you want to do it, helps us get the full scope of who you are as a creative person. I’m a firm believer that design of any ilk is a trade. I want young designers to understand how much they still have to learn from practical experience and enter into the market hungry to absorb.

But basic advice: 

Write a personalized email.*

Follow up if you don’t hear back. *

Explain it. A lot of pride comes from problem-solving well, but if you don’t set up the problem, we can’t appreciate the solution.

Show your process. We don’t know unless you show us how you got there. 

*This applies to those studios where applicants apply via email…