EST. 1979 · FALKIRK, SCOTLAND
The
Humans
Behind
the IDEAS company
About the IDEAS company founder Don Jack and his creative thinking
About the IDEAS company.
IDEAS® was built on the premise that creative thinking — applied with rigour and genuine curiosity — is the most powerful business tool there is.
Forty-seven years later, nothing has changed. Except the number of organisations that have discovered it for themselves.
THE FOUNDER
A modern-day Renaissance man. That’s what the press called him. He’s been called worse.
This is the story of Ideas Founder: Don Jack. Don Jack composed his first song at six. At nine, he conducted his school orchestra to a national music award. By his teens, he was performing in bands. By his twenties, his design work was on Prince’s concert marketing and every Wet Wet Wet record, video, and piece of merchandise — including “Love Is All Around”, one of the best-selling singles in UK chart history.
He’s been a vocalist and guitarist, a drummer in a rock band, a keyboardist who charted a Burt Bacharach cover. He’s signed to Warner Brothers Publishing. He’s fronted the Carnevale Radio Big Band at corporate events and written the book, lyrics, and music for Loch Ness — The Monster Musical.
He’s also a regular magic content and set design contributor to Simon Cowell’s Got Talent franchise, has designed, directed and performed in record-breaking dinner/theatre, and has devised content for shows in London’s West End, on Broadway, and in Las Vegas.
And through all of it — the music, the exhibitions, the TV, the theatre — IDEAS® has been the vehicle. The creative consultancy that takes everything Don has learned about what makes things memorable, and applies it to the organisations that need it most.
Where most consultants optimise processes. Don Jack is more interested in how creative thinking helps the whole organisation function as a system.
“Ideas ahead of what was common at the time, responding to opportunities, recognising patterns, but mostly just doing stuff.”
Many Hats, One Vision
Designer.
AKA: Composer, Artist, Curator, Entrepreneur
Composer. Producer.
Signed to Warner Brothers Publishing. Fronts the Carnevale Radio Big Band. Co-wrote Loch Ness — The Monster Musical. Created music production company DJXJD (Poker Face) and New Country duo JIMNI.
Artist. Curator.
Winner of the Brooke Bond Art Prize (age 11). Paintings and sculpture exhibited internationally. Executive Curator at The Touring Exhibition, with works by artists also held in the Musée d’Orsay.
Museum Founder
Founder of The Museum of Movie Magic, Scotland — wherever the exhibitions appear internationally, museum visitor numbers shoot through the roof.
Serial Entrepreneur
Ventures spanning audiobooks (Coliphon), luxury tartan (Tartan Golf Bags), air quality innovation, property, and film. A record of creating things before the market realises it wants them.
IDEAS® is one part of something bigger
Here’s to all the dreamers.
Don Jack
Founder, Brand Consultant & Imagining Director at IDEAS®
Don Jack is one of the UK’s longest-established independent brand consultants, having helped organisations build, refine and reposition brands since 1979.
As Founder and Imagining Director of IDEAS®, Don has spent more than four decades working at the intersection of branding, design, marketing, visitor experiences and commercial creativity. Throughout that time, he has advised organisations ranging from ambitious start-ups and entrepreneurial businesses to visitor attractions, cultural institutions, destinations and established national brands.
His work is built upon a simple belief:
The problem is rarely the brand. It’s how the brand is understood.
Over the years, Don has developed a distinctive approach that combines strategic thinking, creativity, pattern recognition and commercial understanding. Rather than beginning with assumptions, he focuses on diagnosing the underlying challenges affecting perception, communication and performance.
This philosophy has helped clients uncover opportunities, improve clarity, strengthen customer engagement and create more distinctive positions within increasingly competitive markets.
Since founding IDEAS in 1979, Don has overseen projects spanning:
- Brand strategy and development
- Graphic design and visual communications
- Website design and digital communications
- Visitor attractions and destination marketing
- Touring exhibitions and cultural experiences
- Advertising and promotional campaigns
- Creative consultancy and concept development
- Place branding and tourism initiatives
Having worked through multiple economic cycles, changing technologies and shifting consumer behaviours, Don brings a perspective that can only be acquired through long-term experience. From the emergence of commercial computing and the early days of the internet to today’s AI-driven landscape, he has consistently helped organisations adapt, evolve and communicate more effectively.
Today, Don continues to lead creative thinking at IDEAS, writing regularly on branding, graphic design, marketing, customer perception, visitor experiences and the commercial value of creativity.
His articles draw upon more than four decades of practical experience, helping businesses understand not only what to change, but why.
Areas of Expertise
- Brand Strategy
- Brand Development
- Brand Positioning
- Graphic Design
- Website Design
- Marketing Communications
- Visitor Attraction Development
- Exhibition Concepts
- Tourism Marketing
- Creative Consultancy
- Commercial Creativity
- Perception Design
Experience
Founder, IDEAS®
1979 – Present
More than 40 years advising organisations on branding, design, marketing, visitor experiences and strategic communications.
Published By
Articles authored by Don Jack explore branding, graphic design, marketing strategy, creative thinking, visitor attraction development and business growth through strategic design.
“After more than four decades, I’ve learned that the first question clients ask is rarely the real question. The answer usually lies somewhere deeper. That’s where IDEAS begins.”