Ahem…excuse me. What I meant to say was, “this office has an abundance of character channeled mostly from lighthearted humor and Star Wars references”.
Welcome to Carrot Creative; where Idea Paint covers the walls and customized Yankee’s jerseys hang framed with two inch matte. Located in an old industrial space that grumbles each time the C train crosses the bridge, Carrot caught my eye over a year ago when a pixelated image of Phil Collins popped up in their Easterly window. At the time, I was overseeing communications at a web/dev shop across the street. I leaned towards my tablemate at whispered, “I can feel it coming in the air tonight…hold oooon”. She just stared at me.
Fast forward a few weeks later when I’m enjoying some post-panel cru d’etat at a She Says event. I begin hearing rumors that Dumbo, Brooklyn was campaigning to be named “the digital district” of New York. Everyone in the agency world knows that if you need a new website, a social media strategy or an iPhone app that Dumbo is the first place to look. Any digital company worth their salt sits here under the two bridges overlooking the city. And you know which one was ballsy enough to start that campaign? Carrot, naturally.
For the next year, I became familiar with my “Sussudio” neighbor. I began attending the aptly named Digital Dumbo, a monthly event gathering the brightest minds in interactive. I’d bump into Mike Germano and Maury Postal while getting a sandwich for lunch. I lessened my hatred for the color orange. Soon, meetings were scheduled, offers were made and I find myself looking out the window from the backside of Phil Collins.
I’d feel fake if I gushed about Carrot’s talent, tenacity and freaking brilliant strategic campaigns on it’s own blog. I don’t want to talk about their insanely chocked full business pipeline or the talent banging on the door to get a chance to work here. It’d be silly to highlight the ridiculous employee perks we all get. I mean…really…it’d just be all tooooo self serving.
However, let me address this frat thing. There is a boombox the size of a six-year-old sitting next to a putting green that’s blocked by a Rock Band guitar. The stuffed Yoda slumped over on the windowsill matches the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle drawing done in Crayola paints above him. The recycling bin is overflowing with beer bottles.
Yet, somehow, it works. It feels…creative. Inspired. Carrot has mastered how to be professional while still maintaining a culture and vibe that is smart, imaginative and enterprising. I just hope my mason jar of licorice rope is a welcome addition to the chaos.
