The old typewriter, the architect’s building and the value of doing things properly

I spotted it in the corner at Sedulo during this week’s SuperConnectors event in Leeds. An old typewriter sitting quietly in a beautifully designed space.

It made me pause.

Everything around me felt modern and high energy. A buzz of movement, noise and newness. But that little typewriter? It was a gentle reminder of something slower. More deliberate.

The value of structure. Story. Doing things properly.

It took me back to childhood days at my dad’s architectural practice. The clickety clack as I typed stories on an old typewriter, surrounded by drawings, plans and big ideas. That appreciation for structure, for craft, stayed with me.

Seeing that typewriter sitting quietly in St Paul’s House, once a warehouse for John Barran, the pioneer of mass-produced clothing in Leeds. Designed by Thomas Ambler. Built in 1878. Still standing.

A space built for industry and invention, now filled with people, ideas and connections.

The irony’s not lost on me.

So much of what’s mass produced today doesn’t last. Not in fabric, not in meaning.

But good words? Thoughtfully chosen, rooted in strategy, built to grow with your business (and you), they stick. They last.

Words, like buildings, need solid foundations. Strategy first. Then the story. Then the rest.

They feel like you, even years down the line.

That’s the kind of copy I believe in. The kind I love to write.

Words worth building on. If that’s what you’re after, I’m here.