Sara Rados: A Multi-Hyphenate Creative Visionary

The name Sara Rados has become synonymous with creativity and resiliency. With over eight years of experience, she boasts a degree in Creative Directing and has been a freelance producer with notable fashion and beauty brands.

Throughout her career, she has worked with world-famous brands, including Target, Salt & Stone, Sephora, and Anheuser Busch. Collaborations with New Balance, APC, Salomon, and Outdoor Voices. Moving from a design student to a premier creative in the industry, her career is so much more than simply sticking with it and keeping up; rather, it has been a show of her role as a multi-hat-wearing boss.

Sara started her creative journey studying advertising at OCAD University in Toronto, receiving a Bachelor of Design. It was here where she perfected her craft, and where she refined her well-known attention to detail. "I was aware of my love for creation and that I wanted to move beyond traditional advertising into a more well-rounded position in the creative realm," Sara remembers.

What makes Sara stand out in the competitive world of creativity is her multi-hyphenate hustling, which is something that very few creatives can do as well as she does. While some of her colleagues are focused on just one aspect of the industry, Sara can handle all sides, from creative directing and producing to styling, casting, interior design, prop styling, social media management, client relations, and copywriting.

Such versatility nurtures a deep understanding of the full picture of her work. This allows Sara to pursue each project with a robust view, ensuring each element is in sync with the others and creating one complete story.

"I've almost never said 'no' to a chance of picking up a new skill, even when it felt somewhat far from me becoming 'creative director.' I think it's really important for any good creative director to go through the entire production process. Each role is different, with its unique set of challenges, and understanding this and having empathy towards their roles allows me to lead a creative production in an effective way while nurturing the team into a harmonious working environment," says Sara.

One of Sara's career highlights was walking away with the Art Directors Club award for Best Portfolio at her graduation. Receiving the most prestigious award given to a graduating advertising portfolio has reinforced that she could achieve her dreams.

Another of Sara's pivotal accomplishments was to perform creative direction for the launch of Salt and Stone through Sephora Canada. These photos were live on the Sephora website and hanging in every Sephora location across the country. On top of that, her work was displayed at Neiman Marcus stores, and a video she directed played in Times Square, "One Surreal Moment."

Looking back at the journey she has had so far, Sara stresses a major takeaway that also happens to be her advice on entering into such an erratic career: The top priority in any creative field is versatility and keeping oneself updated.

She believes that being adept at rolling up your sleeves in every department has been key to building her foundation. She continues, "You have to understand all the pieces of the puzzle and how it fits in with each piece you are directing."

Sara has these words of wisdom to offer aspiring creatives: "Stay curious, be open-minded, learn new things, and never underestimate the value in having an expansive skill set. The more you learn about different parts of production, the better leader and innovator you can be."

The story of Sara Rados is an example that success in the creative industry requires equal parts passion, flexibility, and willingness to grow. Those who watch her journey continue to be inspired by the fact that the right mindset makes anything possible.