2 Minutes with Allison Doherty

Allison Doherty is general manager of Colossus Design.

Having worked in creative management and agency operations for nearly 25 years, Allison’s superpower is merging business and creativity at an incredibly high level. 

She helps lead the agency’s brand identity, design, art, and experiential practices from a business standpoint as well as new business development. Having worked on both the client and agency sides, she brings a wealth of experience across the lifestyle, luxury, automotive, pharma, spirits, and CPG categories. Prior to Colossus, Allison collaborated with designer Adam Larson as a partner at Adam&Co. before spinning off and founding A&Co Design, which merged with Colossus in 2022. She spent 15 years at Arnold Worldwide as EVP, director of global operations, where she also managed Arnold’s Design Group, leading a team of 22 award-winning designers across multiple disciplines. While at the Havas-backed agency, she also established and implemented several new capabilities including an in-house Content Production Studio, Creative Technology Lab, and Experience Design group. 

Allison is a founding member of the Executive Committee for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at Derby Academy, a member of the Cohasset Garden Club, a board member of Holly Hill Farm and a board member at Artisan’s Asylum, a maker-space in Allston dedicated to providing equitable facilities for artists and makers of all backgrounds to innovate and create. In what little spare time she has, she also runs a professional beekeeping service and builds bespoke treehouses. Yes, really. 

1. Where you grew up, and where you live now. 

Allison> I grew up on the south shore of Boston in a small town called Scituate. I spent a fair amount of time in New York City, and I now live right back where I started, next to Scituate, in an even smaller town called Cohasset. 

2. How you first realised you were creative. 

Allison> I travelled to northern Spain on an exchange programme when I was in middle school. I had never been exposed to art, architecture and fashion in the way that I was during that time. I spent every free minute I had sitting in the village cathedral sketching. 

3. A person you idolise creatively early on. 

Allison> My grandmother gave me a subscription to W magazine when I was in eighth grade. I became obsessed with the avant garde designers of the time, especially Issey Miyake—a graphic designer turned fashion icon. His designs were influenced by technology. He interpreted shape and form in a way that I had never imagined—incredibly ahead of his time. 

4. A moment from high school or college that changed your life. 

Allison> My sophomore year in college, I got an internship at a gallery called Ubu. The exhibitions shown there were predominantly artists of the Dada, Surrealist, and Constructivist movements. I was surrounded by the provocative work of Hans Bellmer, Yoko Ono, Weegee and Tom Sachs, to name a few. It broadened my perspective and made me think about self-expression in an entirely different light. 

5. A visual artist or band/musician you admire. 

Allison> We are fortunate that so many of our design projects at Colossus enable us to collaborate with artists of all types. Sign painters, muralists, animators, sculptors—we are always looking for creative opportunities that will allow us to highlight the talent of others. For a recent life science/lab identity project here in Boston, we worked with brilliant paper engineer Matt Shilan. His process is mesmerising. 

6. A book, movie, TV show or podcast you recently found inspiring. 

Allison> I’ve been catching up on a podcast series sponsored by Roots of Change about regenerative agriculture—the most recent one I listened to was with the leader of Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture in NY, Jack Algiere. This is a great series for any other creatives out there who are secretly longing to trade it all in for life on the farm. 

7. One of your favourite creative projects you've ever worked on. 

Allison> While in New York, I worked in the Creative department at Tiffany & Co. We shot with some of the most incredible photographers—Patrick Demarchelier, Herb Ritts, Hiro, Dominique Isserman. Shooting designers Elsa Peretti and Paloma Picasso was definitely a career highlight. 

8. A recent project you're proud of. 

Allison> Boston is an incredible hub for startups. Working with founders and entrepreneurs is some of the most exciting work we do. We recently worked with the founders of Goood Wellness on everything from strategy and naming to packaging design and launch assets for their new vitamin supplements brand. Our goal was to bring the optimism and positivity of the brand to life in a way that set it apart from others in the category. The cheeky tone and personality that our writers gave the brand is part of what makes the identity system so much fun to work with. 

9. Someone else's work that inspired you years ago. 

Allison> I made the switch from brand side to advertising in the early 2000’s and was at Arnold during the period that the creative team there was creating some of the most iconic campaigns of the time for Volkswagen. It was a great example of the power that results from design playing a leading role in advertising—the work was simple, emotionally moving and beautifully designed. 

10. Someone else's work you admired lately. 

Allison> One standout for me this past year was Inverroche’s “Bee&Bee” package design for their classic botanical gin. The package was almost entirely regenerative, doubling as a standalone hive for solitary bees, in gratitude for their role in pollinating a third of our global crops—including those grassy botanicals that flavour this particular gin. It was designed entirely with sustainable materials including using laser-engraved graphics and wooden pegs so that the package remained untouched by inks, dyes and metals. As a beekeeper myself, this one really made me smile! 

11. Your main strength as a creative person. 

Allison> Being open-minded and letting others in to influence and shape the creative process. Nothing transformational happens without collaboration and diverse opinions. 

12. Your biggest weakness. 

Allison> Being a working mother of three young girls, I am in a constant mental battle with myself to ensure that I am not letting anyone down, at home or at work. I started second-guessing myself in this later stage of my career much more so than I had in the past. I need to remember I am where I am for a reason. Oh, and also saying yes to everything. This year, I plan to simplify! 

13. A mentor that helped you navigate the industry. 

Allison> So many of the incredible creative talents that I met during my time in New York have stayed with me for decades. There are too many to mention just one. 

14. How you're paying it forward with the next generation of creatives. 

Allison> I have always placed more importance on the success of others around me as opposed to my own. My focus at Colossus is to ensure that our employees have the best, most fulfilling creative experience they can have in the time that they are here—and that we send them off well prepared and inspired for the next chapter, when they are ready to move on. 

15. What you'd be doing if you weren't in advertising. 

Allison> Without question, I’d be living with my family on a farm on Martha’s Vineyard, raising animals, keeping bees and designing beautiful, sustainably packaged goods to sell at our farm stand.