Dina Good
Owner, Dina Good Design, Endwell, NY
CAST member since at least 2003 (probably longer)
CAST Board member 2007-08
CAST GENESIS committee member 2005-08
What does your company do?
Graphic design is the main focus. I serve institutional, corporate and commercial customers. While working on projects, I interact with an endless array of colleagues, including photographers, writers, marketing professionals and printers.
Tell us about the special challenges you face in your business.
I’m terrible at bookkeeping. Actually, I’m pretty careful, but it makes me really mad. As a kid who wanted to be an artist, I never thought about the business aspects of my work.
When computer technology came out, I was furious and resisted until absolutely necessary. I wanted my drawing board back. But those Rapidograph pens kept clogging, and once an Exacto knife jumped off the board and stuck straight up in my thigh. So we move on. The new technology is amazing, but I miss the tactile experience. I also miss the simpler, old-school ways of handling typography. I believe cutting and pasting our own kerning and leading choices by hand protected us from the rush-rush, visually chaotic mentality that’s so prevalent today. Also, having too many typefaces in your system is annoying. I could live with about five typefaces if I didn’t have to live in the 21st century.
What training and prior experience led you to this point in your career?
I have a BFA in Communication Design from Rochester Institute of Technology. After graduation, I went to work for a studio in Rochester, doing mechanicals with rubber cement. Yes, rubber cement! Then I worked for an agency in Connecticut, where I spent 80 hours a week serving Fortune 500 companies. Disaster prevention was the theme; the disasters were big and frequent. Finally, I came to Binghamton and got a life. I worked at The Art Department, which is no longer in business. My own business springboarded from that time (1987 or so) and has grown largely through the associations I developed during that period.
How have you benefited from your membership in CAST?
CAST is an invigorating group of professionals who run the spectrum of specialties. While CAST clearly provides business networking benefits, I’d say the personal benefits outweigh them. The camaraderie is amazing. Direct competitors help one another openly, which improves the collective results. And there is some unbelievable local talent!
Tell us about one of the most rewarding experiences you’ve had as a member of CAST.
Oh, no. Are you referring to the easel/mud/larceny/van/chipmunk United Way incident before Genesis 2007? That was cathartic laughing. I still giggle about that day.
Final words?
If I’m found dead with a manual on my face and Exacto knife in my heart, our dog is smarter than I thought.
To learn more about Dina Good Design, call 607-754-2981 or e-mail Dgood@stny.rr.com .
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