Meet Greg Karis | Graphic Designer/Illustrator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Greg Karis and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Greg, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
It’s quite simple: It’s a second job. In this day and age, it’s almost necessary to earn a second income. Rather than deliver food or drop people off at the club, I’d make extra money developing concepts and exploring ideas for friends and colleagues. The inception of my side hustle came about from social media; old friends or members from my old BNI group would make a blanket request for a logo, an illustration, a poster design, etc. I’d simply offer my services and more often than not, I’d be engaged in a video chat discussing what was needed. If I wasn’t exploring social media asks, friends and colleagues would reach out to me directly for various graphics. From there, I’d design anything from a WWE fan group logo, hip-hop album covers, or illustrations for non-profit educational programs.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My journey is still underway, I don’t know if it’ll ever be complete. Like most journeys, mine isn’t simply point A to point B.

I’ve been drawing as far back as I can remember, my room would be covered in child like drawings of Corvettes and rock bands (two things I still love to this day). Fast forward to high school: I attended a graphic design vocation class in my senior year at the request of my counselor. The counselor presented a graphic design path as a realistic and viable career choice. From there, I applied credits from the vocational class to a design and illustration program at Arapahoe Community College. I graduated in 2005 and worked for Fast Signs… I WAS FIRED! It was devastating, but I wasn’t deterred. I worked different part time, mundane, retail jobs until fortune smiled on me in 2007. I was lucky enough to land an entry level job designing shoe charms that fit win the holes of Crocs (aka Jibbitz). I was laid-off in 2009 due to the recession. I landed a job with a fleet decal company soon after. This (like Fast Signs) was not a good fit either and I found myself bouncing from various jobs. Working at a convenience store, Red Rocks hauling stuff back and forth, a credit union contact center, and at the credit union as a teller were some of the “non art” jobs I had to do to make rent and pay bills. Once again, I was fortunate to find work with Victory Print and Design (formerly BizCard Xpress). I learned how a business is ran, communicating with clients and networking while I worked there. I took these skills with me to my current position at Colographic. I love my job! I get to work with a team dedicated to perfecting the way we design, print and install fleet vehicle decals and vinyl wraps.

When I’m not working my 9 – 5 at Colographic, I am applying the same perseverance and dedication to my side hustle. There are times that the amount of work I do between the two jobs can be arduous. I do my best to keep a positive attitude and a good work ethic (mental therapy helps). I want people to know that when you work with me, my work is going to be a result of effective communication, hard work, and pride. I like what I do and I want YOU to like what I do too.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’m a huge fan of small tourist towns. Our first stop would be some place like Manitou Springs or Estes Park. If the town has a small arcade, candy/fudge shop, antique store, a small brewery, or any charming/weird mom and pop store I’m gonna hit it up! Afterwards, I’d probably check out the galleries on Santa Fe street, Black Book Gallery is one of my favorites (I met my favorite artist, Sheppard Fairey there). In the evening, I’d hope there’s some live local music going on. We could go check out Fox Lake at HQ, IAMTHESHOTGUN at Herman’s Hideaway, Count Her Fit at the Oriental Theatre, or Royals at Lost Lake. Of course, you need a good watering hole with great food… Luckily The Brutal Poodle, The 1up Bar, and the Candy Shot have us covered.

Next day, I’d hit up the Denver Art Museum or the Museum of Contemporary Art. We can cruise down Broadway, grab a VooDoo Donut, check out the thrift stores, and pop into the Irish Rover for a pint.

If you come and visit in the middle of the summer, we are totally going to the Renaissance Fair and a show (movie or music) at Red Rocks.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I’ve got plenty of shoutouts! First one that comes to mind is my wife, Audra. She is a beacon of support while I work on projects. Whether she’s keeping the cat at bay, making dinner, or critiquing my artwork (whilst working in senior healthcare!), Audra has been amazing. Love ya babe!

Here are a few clients/friends I want to shout out I have worked with:

Issac Sarles, he is one part of the hip-hop duo Real Love. Issac hooked me up with Denver Voyager for an initial interview and here we are now doing a Shoutout interview!

Cathy Burds with Justice Speaks (justice-speaks.org): I provided illustrations and design for educational tools to help children learn about service animals.

Phil DiMuro (Founders Approach, LLC) and Dr. Sara Tarr (Clear Alignment). I’ve worked with both of these amazing individuals on the above mentioned Justice speaks project. Phil programmed my illustrations and animations into educational tools. Sara worked with each of us to form on cohesive package to spread ADA education and help garner funding for the Justice Speaks program.

Ellaun “Lonnie” Williams (@LonnieWho): Lonnie is an amazing up and coming local rapper who I worked with to design album covers and merchandise. Ellaun started as a client and ended up an even better friend.

Nikko and Bianca Gallardo (bangcreated.com): Nikko and Bianca are husband and wife team who create variety of mediums including painting, drawing, sculpting, fiber art and digital design work. They are good friends and a good source of inspiration/critiquing.

Jeremy Hyson and Tom Suey Lemcke (@BreathingNuLife Podcast): Jeremy and I have been friends since high school and we share a passion for nu-Metal. He’s been the front man of several bands and recently, he and Tom teamed up to give us the Breathing Nu Life podcast. I’ve worked with them to create branding for their show.

Dusty Trujillo: one of my oldest friends, lead singer, Fred Durst fanboy, and fellow partner in the music scene. Dusty and I worked together for our production company Almost Human Productions back in the day. We would find local metal, punk, and any kind of “core” band and book shows at local venues. Dusty taught me a lot about the music scene while I created the posters and flyers for our shows.

Robbie Skolnick: We just reconnected over a decade later. Life is too short for drama and I’m glad we realized that (especially since I’ve know the dude since 1994). Robbie (you probably guessed it but now) was in the music scene once upon a time. I was tasked (once again) with providing album and merchandise design.

Justin Roush: Boss turned friend. Justin and I ran Victory print and design from 2015 – 2018. Known affectionately as the JOCK and the NERD, we designed and printed marketing materials for other small businesses. I learned many invaluable lessons on communication, networking, and running a business.

Here are some quick client shout outs I need to mention:

Caleb Torres (Empire Wrestling Fang Group), Mitch Griffin (1 Stop Financial), Jessica Mendez (hair stylist. IG: @jlmendez_01), Jalen Dalla (Grand Junction metal band @Awaiting Eternity), “Uncle” Eloy Contreras (Commerce City auto body shop. IG: autobuildersinc_8085), Michael “Dude Boro” Brown (www.cherrycreekpowersportrental.com) and Walker McIntyre/Jason Burds (Denver funk/blues band. IG: @holyrollers237).

I want to mention a few friends who offer their support and encouragement:

Patrick “Thunder” Sarles, Zach Teresi, Matt Hawkins, and Justin Takajjart. You guys are the coolest, and I’m glad you are a part of my journey.

Instagram: @grizzwald1981

Linkedin: @Greg karis

Facebook: @Greg Karis

Other: DM me on any of the above social media platforms. Let’s talk, I’d love to design something for you.

Image Credits
Head shot provided by Gabriel Gutierrez