Alex Aperios on why brands need to stop playing it safe to succeed

For Alex Aperios, Founder of London-based independent studio Aperios Design, standing out has become a professional conviction. Working with brands, web3 start-ups and businesses worldwide, Aperios has built a practice defined by what he calls ‘bold and unapologetic’ design – an approach rooted in the belief that attention is harder than ever to earn, and blending in is the quickest route to being forgotten. His perspective extends beyond client work into public discourse: he’s vocal on X about critique culture, created Snapshift to make AI prompts publicly accessible, and maintains that creative block typically stems from not understanding the problem deeply enough. Having spent years at agencies before going solo, Aperios now champions a methodology built on asking more questions, doing thorough research, and maintaining what he describes as a ‘human touch’ even while embracing AI tools. It’s a practice shaped equally by strategic depth and creative confidence – one that prioritises collaboration, challenges clients to break from convention, and advocates for treating each other’s work with more respect. TBI: Hey Alex! How are things? AA: Very good! This year has been hectic, to say the least. The studio has been busy without a moment to spare, and I’ve had the chance to collaborate with some really awesome designers, studios, clients and brands. Some really cool stuff I would love to share, but have to wait a bit until they go live!. I also got married recently, so it’s been a pretty awesome year!