Who are you? 
Danny Campbell, founder of Hoko Design.

What does your business do?
It is an architecture and design company operating a variety of fields including residential architecture, product design, audio visual design, art, biomedical product design, furniture design, research.

Where are you based? 

I’m currently working from a cottage I recently purchased with my fiancée and young baby in Kirkintilloch.

I’m frequently around on site and meeting different people but the late hours work are done in the cottage.
How did you get started?

I’ve always been obsessed with design which let me to study at The Glasgow School of Art.

After I completed a bachelor degree in architecture I was successful in attaining a very competitive job as Architectural Technician at Twycross Zoo.  

I was dropped in the deep end but I loved my time there. I completed a masters architecture degree in Leicester, whilst working full time and playing rugby semi-professionally.

It was an exhausting time. Following the three year masters I decided to leave the Midlands so quit my job, and told my partner (who was finishing a PHD) that I would be going away and didn’t know for how long.

I found a rugby club in Vancouver who put me in accommodation and helped me find a job.

The job was digging on a building side using a shovel. I played rugby and dug holes in Canada for six months before coming home for Christmas. I had planned to be back in Scotland for two weeks, earn a bit of money, before heading back but on January 2016 I started Hoko Design. 

What is your top tip?
Hard work cures stress. 

How long has your business been running?
Since January 2016

Has anyone helped you get started and how?
I have had a lot of advice from my father (a facial surgeon) who created some medical products that were sold to America in the 1990s. Other than his advice I have done everything myself.

What was your first deal? 
My first big deal was with Infracore, my longest running client.

We signed a 12 month deal at the start of 2016 and since have become very close with the managing director.

We have since become partners in a new business together called Custom4 which will bring innovative solutions to the audiovisual industry.

What was your biggest mistake?

Taking on too much work. It’s not cheating to outsource, it’s good business!

Who is your mentor? 

My father and grandfather are both firmly in the inspiration category. Both are both the most hard working men I have ever met. Davy Currie from Infracore has been an excellent mentor.

Where do you plan your business to be in five years time?
I would see a multifaceted design enterprise operating in the Art, Architecture, Product and Property sectors.