Background info:
Gary is a writer & director. He was born and raised in Rhode Island in the US, lived in London for 12 years working in television and advertising and is now living in Stockholm Sweden.
Gary has extensive international experience as a creative. He has worked as Creative Director at Bodén & Co, a Swedish communications company specializing in film, events, and research, and at Fox Kids in London where he managed a team of creatives, worked with pan-European on air branding and the transition from Fox Kids to Disney. He was also a senior promo director at CNBC Europe for several years. He was worked on a lot projects though his company shed9.
He has written and directed and or edited numerous ads, promos, and short programs, and image films for companies such as: MTG, Disney, ModernTV, TV8, FoxKids, TV4, Discover Channels Nordic, Ericsson, Skanska, Posten, Proffice, SCA, and more.
Education:
BA - Psychology - Providence College
BA - English - Providence College
MA - English - University of Rhode Island
MBA - Management - University of Rhode Island
About Shed9:
Shed9 was founded in London in 1999 by Gary Fabbri and Malin Fabbri.
It started out as a network of consultants working with design, marketing and advertising for internet, print and television. Their strength is in understanding client's needs and developing creative solutions.
Shed9 moved its headquarters to Stockholm in 2003 but maintains strong ties with London.
Today the company focuses on the English speaking market in Stockholm, working with design, film, print and the internet.
Industry: Design/Marketing/Advertising
Interview:
Gary grew up near Boston, USA. He was interested in TV, Film, and Music, and he decided that he needed to move to LA, NY, or London to have a good business. He worked for NBC, SuperChannel, and NBCNews, where he realized that he loved to do promo work. At that time, Gary started directing. After a while, Gary got a job as a creative director at FoxKids. While in London, He met a Swedish girl and wanted to start a family, so he moved to Stockholm.
Stockholm was more expensive there than Gary had imagined. He started working right away at a production company. Early in his work in Stockholm, Gary contacted TV Company in London Viasec, and was given 1 name in a production company in Stockholm. Gary contacted this Stockholm production company and visited to prospect for a new job. He found that it was quite chaotic there. He was hired for his technical editing work, and after a while he was doing so much work and doing so well at it that he was promoted. All the while, he kept getting contacts. After 2 years of doing additional freelancing work, Gary became the creative director of company in Stockholm, and worked for almost 2 years when finally he decided it was time to do his own thing, and he quit. He wanted to do own stuff, run his own show.
His new role that he created for himself was a combination of freelance and his own production. He ended up working on something he liked. He didn't have to do any of the HR side that was in old administrative role. "I like doing stuff" he says, referring to the stuff he likes, rather than the administrative duties that go along with being in a big company. Gary never thought of self as entrepreneur. He was just doing what he loves, and he grew his business as he found himself having more work.
1. What motivated Gary to start a business?
Wanted to do what he liked the most and be independent.
2. How do entrepreneurs in Sweden go about starting up businesses?
Gary started as a basic registered company when started as a freelancer. He had to do that so he could take in loans, pay taxes. His former partner helped him to do that because it was a little complicated to set up. Two years into it, the work level became to a point where forming an AB was more favorable for his money than the old set up. At that point, he got an accountant and then running the business was just a matter of filling the necessary paperwork.
Shed9 was mostly private projects in London. When creating his AB, Gary kept the same name for that freelance project company in London and registered that name in Sweden for his AB.
3. What kind of assistance does the government give to entrepreneurs to encourage new businesses to start in Sweden?
Gary never asked for any kind of assistance, but he says "There probably are things available. I just haven't noticed or thought about differences. There are a ton of taxes here. AB allows you to pay 20% instead of 30% that you would be paying, so registering as an AB helps."
Piece of advice to anyone: "Be engaged and interested and keep learning. Do that and whatever you do will work out whether you are employed or an independent. If you focus only on making money, you will find your work more challenging."
Personal Commentary
Gary's story is like many of the entrepreneurs here in Sweden. A lot of people start businesses out of necessity to follow their passions. Not a lot of people start businesses to grow a business, they do it so that they can work for themselves. I have always wanted to have a business so that I could grow a business, much like a game. How can I turn something small into something big?
Gary found success doing what he loved, and being good at it. I hope I can have mastery of some skill
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