Kelly Molson

Choosing to study a BTEC National Diploma in Graphic Design was the best decision that Kelly ever made. She was given the opportunity to design for live projects, and even though she was offered a place at university, she turned it down in favour of entering the world of work in a junior position.

Having had both good and bad experiences as an employee, it was in Kelly’s last job, feeling trapped and undervalued, that she finally decided to take the plunge.

Feeling like she was never in the right place and inspired by young entrepreneurs like fellow Make Your Mark Ambassador Fraser Doherty, Kelly Molson and a work colleague Paul Wright decided to break free from the same old design projects. They set up a website to use as a portfolio and sent it out to prospective employees. When friends and family saw the website, a friend asked them to produce posters and flyers for his company. As more and more requests came in, Kelly thought, “Why don’t we go it alone and start a business?”

After applying for a business bank account and producing business cards, Rubber Cheese was born!

Rubber Cheese is a creative graphic and web design agency, specialising in helping businesses, advertising agencies, marketing departments and in house design teams beat their deadlines by working as a virtual creative department. Their clients range from public and private sector, small local organisations to large national companies.

Their first big break came in the form of an old school friend who asked Kelly if she would like to join his firm to pitch for some work from Tesco; a week later they secured a two year design contract. Kelly credits their Tesco contract with helping them refine their business image and find their niche.

What started out as a bedroom enterprise five years ago has matured into a strong, reputable and highly creative business, boasting clients such as Hamleys, The Good Travel Guide and new West End musical Charlie’s Story.

When starting your own business, Kelly recommends finding someone you respect in the business world to be your mentor, getting out and meeting people and joining networks. As a huge fan of networking, Kelly enjoys connecting new people with someone they want to talk to. “There’s nothing more rewarding than helping,” she says.