Chloé Templeman is the executive creative director at Pearlfisher, a strategy-first brand design agency creating "irresistible human connection." Originally from Scotland, Chloé spent 17 years working across London’s top agencies, working with big brands like Fortnum & Mason, Diageo and Unilever.
As a long-standing mentor across several programs, Chloé is passionate about supporting the next generation of design talent and helping more women move into leadership roles. As part of our 5 Questions series, I caught up with Chloé to discuss career imposter syndrome, pet peeves and the 24/7 drive of the creative mind.
What’s the ugliest object/design trend you secretly love?
I’m increasingly drawn to the deliberate "so bad it's good" design trend. I am seeing a resurgence of anti-design, clumsy typography, clashing colour palettes, bad font choices and layouts that break every traditional rule until they somehow right themselves again. It is an unapologetic revival of lo-fi graphics with delightfully cringeworthy clip art that transports me straight back to the early nineties and being ten years old, blindly tinkering on MS Paint.
There’s a real charm in this intentional chaos that makes me smile. By pushing objectively bad design until it loops back to being iconic, it injects a much-needed playfulness into the landscape. It requires a masterful touch, and the right context and application to communicate the intended message. But when done well, it’s the ultimate nostalgic guilty pleasure. So bad, yet secretly so good.
What’s been the biggest imposter syndrome moment in your career?
Like many (especially women) climbing the industry ranks, I have navigated my fair share of imposter syndrome along the way. It definitely hit hardest when I was promoted to creative director. It was a role I’d always wanted, and worked so hard to get to. But once I got there, I looked at the other directors around me, many who used to be my boss, and felt like I didn’t quite measure up to their brilliance. I didn’t operate the same way they did, and I was secretly convinced I shouldn’t be in the role.
The turning point came when I ran a big pitch and won. It made me realise that it was actually a good thing I wasn't exactly like them, because my approach was working. There is no single right way to be a creative director. In fact, you need that diverse mix of personalities and perspectives in the room to build a fully rounded team. Once I accepted that just being myself was enough, I was finally able to drop the self-doubt and get on with doing the work… my way.
What’s your creative pet peeve?
Using AI to give feedback on creative work. It’s a slippery slope because a bot doesn't know the brief, the context, or the actual problem you’re trying to solve. Worse, it takes the power out of people’s hands and completely ignores their own gut feeling and experience.
AI is quite literally built on what’s already been done. So, if we’re trying to push the status quo and do something genuinely brave, asking an algorithm for its opinion is the quickest way to kill that momentum and play it safe. I’d much rather clients trust their own instincts and just sit down to have an honest conversation with us. It’s absolutely fine to use AI to sharpen or condense opinions you’ve already formed, but the moment you hand over your decision-making power to an algorithm, the work suffers. If we want to create truly great, disruptive design, the human perspective has to lead.
What's one thing you wish more people understood about your role/industry?
That you don’t just shut your laptop and switch your brain off at 5:30PM like other jobs. Creativity isn’t a job you clock out of; it’s a lifestyle.
That drive is inherently wired into me, and I genuinely couldn't turn it off even if I tried. I see the world through a completely different lens; my eyes and ears are constantly open and pulling inspiration from the most unexpected places 24/7, always thinking. I honestly love it and couldn’t see myself ever not doing it. It’s a deep-rooted passion, and I like to think that energy translates directly into the work. It’s wild how the creative brain never really rests. It's always, always on.
What one word would you like to be remembered by?
If I had to choose a single word, it would be the amazing Scottish word Gaisgeil. It is a deeply empowering word that roughly translates to someone who is brave and fiercely capable. Embodying an unwavering determination to achieve a goal and does so with passion.
