Open Studio #1: Yas Banks Doesn't Know How to Explain Her Job Either.

Introducing Open Studio, a brand new podcast about what the creative industry's actually like. For the people in it, the people near it and the people still working out whether to jump in.

First up, Shillington's Jack sits down with Manchester Designer & Shillington's Social & Community Coordinator Yas Banks.

Try explaining graphic design at a family dinner. Go on. We'll wait.

You'll get through about four words before someone nods like they understand, then asks a follow-up question that makes it clear they absolutely do not. Yas Banks knows the feeling better than most. In episode one of Open Studio, we sat down with the Manchester-based designer to talk about the industry, the process, and the one relative who still thinks she works with water parks.

Yas Banks is a graphic designer based in Manchester, five-plus years deep across arts, hospitality and entertainment. She's currently building her own studio on the side, and works as a community social coordinator at Shillington, where she spends her days doing the thing she's best at: getting creative people talking to each other.

Every designer has a version of this story. Yas's happened at a family gathering, when a relative misheard "graphic designer" as "rapid designer" and ran with it. Questions about water flow followed. Then, somehow, theme parks.

"It's not uncommon for someone to ask me what I do and completely misunderstand my answer," Yas says.

It's funny, but it points at something real. Design is everywhere. It's billboards, packaging, the app you're reading this on and almost nobody clocks that a person made it.

"I often find myself explaining that I'm the person who brings these ideas to life, and that design is a crucial part of communication in our everyday lives."

You don't need to defend your job at every dinner party. But you do need an answer ready, because the question is coming.

They should care about your process.

Ask Yas what excites her about a project and she won't mention the final file. She'll talk about the mess in between.

"For me, the excitement comes from how you get from point A to point B," she explains.

That's not a throwaway line, it's how she actually works. Before anything gets designed, Yas is deep in research: social listening, audience digging, working out what's landing and what's dead on arrival.

"I spend a lot of time on social listening, really trying to understand what works and what doesn't in the current design landscape."

Skip that stage and you're just decorating. Do it properly and the ideas hold up longer than a trend cycle.

Ask Yas how she's built a five-year career without a fixed lane, and the answer is more like a habit than a masterplan.

"I don't say no to opportunities because you never know where the right project might lead you," she says.

That's how a portfolio ends up spanning arts, hospitality and entertainment instead of one safe niche. Every strange brief adds a skill you didn't know you'd need.

The other half of it is talking to clients early, not after the concept's locked.

"I like to initiate conversations early in the ideation phase to ensure we're on the right track."

Fewer surprises at delivery. Fewer redos. More trust, built on record.

• Have an answer ready. You will be asked what you do, badly. Have a one-line explanation and let the "rapid designer" jokes write themselves.
• Front-load the research. Social listening and audience digging aren't optional extras — they're where the actual ideas come from.
• Take the weird brief. Saying yes to the project outside your comfort zone is how your skill set and your portfolio actually grow.
• Talk to clients early. Loop them in during ideation, not at the reveal. It's the difference between feedback and a rewrite.

Open Studio, made at Shillington. Episode 01, listen here.