Hudson native lands on BostInno’s 25 Under 25 list

by Laura Straub

Hudson native Nathan Hulsey loves to solve problems. That’s why he was first drawn to design, dabbling in Adobe Creative Suite as a Western Reserve Academy student.

“At its core, I believe that design is visual problem solving, which is what attracted me to it originally,” he said. “You’re always designing for someone, so it’s key to learn how to ask the right questions and truly empathize with them.”

And Hulsey, who attended Old Trail School in Bath before WRA, has gotten pretty good at asking the right questions. As a graphic design major at Northeastern, he helped build and lead the student-powered design studio, called Scout. Shortly after graduating in 2017, he started, grew and within 1 1/2 years sold a Boston-based digital marketing company called Bad Design, a feat that landed the 24-year-old on online news site BostonInnov’s 2018 25 Under 25 list.

“Right after graduating was the best time to take a huge leap of faith into something that could fail,” Hulsey said. “I’m pretty pragmatic, so I just wanted to see if we could do it. I wanted to have a flexible lifestyle, and I wanted to continuing leading and building something meaningful.”

The agency, which he co-founded with partner Julia Wilson, focused on branding, web design, web development, product design, product strategy and print design, following a less but better approach.

“I would say that I am most aligned with the philosophies of iconic product designers Don Norman and Dieter Rams. In the words of Dieter Rams, ‘Less, but better’ is my general approach,” Hulsey said. “That being said, I am personally interested in how we can introduce more physicality and dimensionality to digital spaces. I’m a bit unenthused by the general trend of flat design and quirky illustrations.”

Hulsey demonstrated his design strategies by working with companies like the New England Venture Capital Association, which was one of his favorite re-brands and website redesigns, and a slew of unique startups in the Boston area.

Others in his industry took notice. Just one and a half years after Hulsey and Wilson started Bad Design, the company was acquired by Newburyport, Mass.-based Rocket Insights, which has offices in Boston and New York City. He and Wilson stayed on with Rocket as part of the acquisition.

“The day-to-day feels about the same. Rocket is a very autonomous workplace, which is great,” said Hulsey. “The biggest difference is that I’m now in New York City and Julia and I have been working physically in the same place more than we did when we ran a company together. We were mainly remote.”

So after founding and selling a design company, moving to New York City and landing a spot on BostInno’s 2018 25 Under 25 list, Hulsey’s biggest problem to solve is what comes next.

“That’s a great question and one that I’ve been trying to answer myself. The short answer is, I don’t really know right now,” Hulsey said. “I’ve spent a lot of time – since before high school – setting goals for myself and rigidly hitting them along the way. Right now I’m just trying to learn as much as I possibly can at Rocket to help inspire the next big goal.”

If anything, Hulsey said, one of his short-term goals is learning how to become more patient and to be content with what is happening right now. He is focusing on getting his bearings in New York, new business acquisition and enjoying the day-to-day learning and rigor of his current role, instead of looking far out to the next big thing.

But it’s hard to tell just how far on the horizon the next big thing really is.

“If there is anything I’ve learned from starting a company and being acquired, it’s that it’s impossible to predict what is going to happen to you in even just a year. Being acquired at the age of 24 was not even on the long list of things I could ever have expected to happen,” Hulsey said. “So now I’m just rolling with the punches. The next thing, the next goal, will reveal itself in due time I’m sure.”

Featured image photo caption: Nathan Hulsey