SEEDs of Success: Louis MacDonald

SEED client Louis runs DIRTY HUGO, a platform for alternative wearable art made through the medium of screen-printing.

Tell us briefly about your business?

DIRTY HUGO is a platform for alternative wearable art, shaped by music, pop culture, and personal experience. I translate this through the medium of screen-printing. I want to create a distinct, edgier style of clothing aimed at 18–60-year-olds that stands apart from mainstream brands.

How did you get started and how has your business evolved over time?

I began printing after completing my Masters at Duncan of Jordanstone in 2022. After regular comments that my work would suit apparel, I launched my first t-shirt line: I NEARLY MADE IT AS A PRO. The slogan resonated widely and sold well, reinforcing the idea that my art is accessible in this form.

My uncle set up DIRTY HUGO a few years ago now as a business with a view for me to express my artistic creation in a broader scope. I would label my core principles as accessibility, sustainability and visual communication. These principles are demonstrated by the materials I use, the prices I set my products at and what each individual piece of work says.

Through talking to fellow artists/creatives, getting involved in stalls and residencies and visiting exhibitions, I have been able to develop my brand and get a feel for what would get more eyes on it. Networking is the key to growing a business and getting people to understand your brand and what you are all about. I have found conversing with people to be such a key part of what has got me to where I am today as an artist and as the owner of a business.

“I have found conversing with people to be such a key part of what has got me to where I am today as an artist and as the owner of a business.”

What support have you had and what has that enabled you to do?

My biggest support has been my family. Taking me to stalls, turning up to my exhibitions and sharing my work online. Having a small entrusted group of people is key to growing as an artist and as a business.

For me the hardest thing about running a business is doing everything on my own, from making designs, ordering stock and materials, sourcing printmaking resources, etc. It’s the constantly spinning plates and managing everything by myself. Networking and speaking to like-minded people helps support me, and things like GrowBiz have been a great support to me too.

GrowBiz has enabled me to be more proactive within my business. Giving me the opportunity to expand my materials, apparel and providing advice and having conversations on small goals for me to develop my brand. I’ve really enjoyed engaging with them and it has really helped my confidence grow as an artist and as a business owner.

What lessons have you learned along the way?

I think my biggest mistake to date is not being more prolific and printing more. Seizing the opportunity after the first drop of t-shirt and making more. Sometimes life gets in the way, however I should have been braver and capitalised on what I had made initially. It was quite a successful first drop, so I should have continued with making the next thing!

My biggest achievement to date is having someone telling me they liked the idea of my brand and wanted to buy a t-shirt. It is that simple!

My advice to someone starting up a business is speak to those around you that you trust most. Have a close network of people you can lean on for advice and ideas from. Go with your gut instinct and take a leap of faith! You never know if something is or isn't for you if you don’t take the chance in the first place.

Tell us about your plans for the future?

I want to grow the brand to the point where I can translate my art into various forms of sustainable and accessible clothing. Where people think of Dirty Hugo in the same terms they regard Stussy or Supreme, but feel it’s more accessible in terms of price and identity.

I would also aim to expand the brand to a point where I could recruit people that were like-minded and creative. That got the idea of the brand and would help drive it to a bigger audience on a larger scale. People that could assist with the printmaking process and help build a website that has Dirty Hugo on its own domain with its own unique brand style.