Why I accidentally built a fictional law firm populated by exhausted lawyers wearing their own case files.
When I first started designing tees, the idea was simple enough. I wanted a creative project for later life; something interesting, flexible and entirely different from my day-to-day job. After more than two decades supporting lawyers, investment bankers and professional services teams, I thought a small apparel brand might keep me occupied in the run-up to retirement.
What I did not expect was to create an entire fictional law firm.
The first designs were observations rather than slogans.
"Equity Partner Mood."
"Billable Heat."
"Elevated Counsel."
They weren't descriptions of real people, but anyone who has worked in a law firm recognises the personalities immediately.
The partner who says very little but somehow controls the room.
The associate surviving on caffeine and deadlines.
The professional who remains calm while everything around them catches fire.
The designs became characters. The characters became stories.
Then something unexpected happened.
Instead of simply posting product photographs, I started creating short reels. A lawyer reading a file while industrial fans attempted to fight impossible billing targets. A professional standing silently in a kitchen while everyone instinctively understood the situation. A courtroom appearance interrupted by "Hot Flash Jurisdiction."
They were only 13 to 18 seconds long, but they felt less like adverts and more like case notes from a fictional practice area.
Each shirt became evidence.
Each reel became a witness statement.
Each character became part of the same professional universe.
The strange thing is that none of these stories are entirely fictional. They are built from years of observations gathered across trading floors, boardrooms, law firms, document centres, meetings and late-night deadline sessions; onshore and offshore. Perhaps some professionals may recognise themselves somewhere within the collection - others may not.
The tees are not really the starting point. The stories are.
Perhaps that is why I enjoy the process so much. After years spent supporting other people's work, I have discovered a Saturday morning creative outlet that allows me to capture the humour, resilience, pressure and occasional absurdity of professional life.
The result is a fictional law firm populated by exhausted lawyers, overachieving associates, unflappable partners and professionals attempting to maintain dignity while surviving deadlines, meetings and hot flashes.
Fortunately for everyone involved, none of them require 360 appraisals.
For now, they simply need new stories.
And, occasionally, a new tee.
Related Observations:
It's never the job. It's always the characters.
Every profession has its characters. Some simply end up on a tee.
Policy Note:
Three related observations may travel together.