alex ezlakowski
Print & digital
graphic designer
Graphic designer with nine years of experience in both print and digital design, skilled in working with high-profile brands and proficient in a variety of design software. Demonstrated expertise in advertising, branding, photo editing, and creating visually impactful content across various media, with a strong emphasis on collaboration and innovation. Proven ability to manage multiple projects, adhere to brand guidelines, and deliver creative solutions that enhance brand recognition and sales.
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Event Invitations
Photo Editing
Homepage Banners
Social Media posts
Web Editing
Email Newsletters
Billboards
Magazine Layouts
Menus
FEATURED PROJECTS
AVEIL
Front-end / creative direction
Rebranding Something Borrowed into Aveil, a luxury bridal rental service specializing in fashion forward accessories for all wedding occasions including bachelorette parties, engagement photos, bridal showers and rehearsal dinners.
Our comprehensive redesign includes a new logo, sophisticated color palette, sleek website, and elegant marketing materials. In collaboration with the brand's founders, we have elevated Aveil to epitomize chic, cool, and a luxurious style while promoting eco-friendliness and sustainability. Aveil is where brides find their perfect accessories in a reusable space. We’re on a mission to help brides look and feel iconic.
Designed brand guidelines, gift cards, pop-up event materials, promo cards, flyers, poster signage, as well as, other marketing materials. Front-end design of the Aveil homepage website along with additional pages. Assist in photo shoots and content used for Aveil’s website and social media.
LUXE MAGAZINE
LUXE is a nationwide interior design magazine, that publishes a new issue every two months across major U.S. cities. I designed several layouts and spreads for this publication working with Abt in partnership with our brands. Each ad features a single or multi-product appliance to help spread brand and product awareness.
Worked with the marketing department, as well as the brand themselves, to come up with copy, imagery, product(s) and approval. A print ad is the perfect way for nationwide brand coverage or increased visibility in a specific market or targeting a location.
united center displays
The Chicago Bulls are one of the most recognizable sports teams in the world. Working in partnership with them, the Chicago Blackhawks and the Chicago Bears, I designed arena LED signs to advertise Abt and their vendors. The banners can be seen on lower, upper fascia levels, as well as, a main court side banner which is visible to those in the stadium and watching the game on TV. This made the marketing reach over a million views. The banners are repeated a few times throughout a game and feature dual branding for Abt and its vendor. Chicago Bears games include a logo and banner on the scoreboard during the game, while stadium TVs include side displays showing off branding. LEDs are tested in the stadium by the organization's media department before being displayed at a game, to make sure nothing is cut off or issues with the designs. Abt also sponsors the "Get Loud" scoreboard during peak breaks of games, which is large brand exposure and logo recognition.
Viral photographs of Abt branded LED signs have been featured on popular Instagram accounts as well as Twitter. The posts/images have been "liked", shared, retweeted, and commented on, all leading to significant brand exposure and awareness on Social Media.
Photographs were taken by the Chicago Bulls, Chicago Blackhawks & Chicago Bears organizations and/or their paid photographers & screenshots are referenced from Instagram and Twitter.oculus meta
email & homepage
Designed a brand exclusive email in partnership with Oculus for a new product feature - Quest 2. The email reached around 1.2 million of Abt’s newsletter nationwide subscribers. This product promotion was also assisted with the design of a homepage banner that was advertised on Abt.com, with about 4.5 million page views per month.
Briefed with approved copy and imagery, I designed the layout with specific virtual game ads, as well as, accessory products to promote sales. This was a fun, colorful, yet minimal and modern design experience which reflects Oculus' style and brand. An increased number in Quest 2 product sales was seen as this email newsletter was sent to over 1 million of Abt's subscribers. Every exclusive email design is approved by
the brand.
dyson
This Dyson exclusive email was designed in mind to push the brands new air care product line, as well as, home and beauty care. The email I designed reached around 1.2 million of Abt’s newsletter nationwide subscribers. I worked with Dyson and the marketing department to layout which specific products were to be featured in the newsletter. Abt and Dyson saw a huge revenue bump in these particular Products. This email was sent to 1 million of Abt's newsletter subscribers.
social media
Worked alongside the marketing department to design paid and organic social media ads. Advertising for these brands is built into their marketing budgets and contracts with Abt. These ads are used in weekly and/or monthly social campaigns. Advertising banners are also designed to be included in email newsletters, which are sent to over 1 million Abt newsletter subscribers.
Brands include:
Samsung
LG
Tempur-Pedic
Garmin
Microsoft
Dyson
Garmin
Sony
miele
email & homepage
Miele is a high-end appliance company from Germany. I designed a brand exclusive email in partnership with Miele x Abt to promote their specific appliance offer and showcase some of the brand's top categories. The email I designed reached around 1.2 million of Abt’s newsletter nationwide subscribers. The kitchen appliance promotion was also advertised as a homepage banner on Abt.com, which has about 4.5 million page views per month. I worked with Miele on copy and imagery assets. Every exclusive email design is approved by the brand.
La dolce vita
engagement
“It had to be you…. We say that often, because the universe conspired in our favor.” - Pauline
On June 22nd, Pauline and Josh were engaged at Villa del Balbianello in Lake Como, Italy.
A very special engagement party invitation set to the theme of La Dolce Vita. Summer in Italy. A fun and colorful design, for a fun and colorful couple.
Design Materials:
Printed invitations
Website for sharing their love story & RSVP’s
Napkins
Coasters
Thank You Cards
invitations
baby shower
Special baby shower invitations that I designed for my close friend, who is expecting a baby boy this summer. The theme of the party is “French Hot Air Balloons”. Claire is a beautiful, elegant, and chic woman and I wanted these designs to reflect a classy Parisian look. The hot air balloon drawing is from a vintage article and originally a black and white outline, that I later filled in on Photoshop using water color brushes.
Itinerary
Girl’s weekend in san miguel
Pauline celebrated her 30th birthday with a weekend get away to her dream city of San Miguel de Allende in Mexico. Surrounded by her close group of girl friends, the weekend was going to be filled with exciting activities. What better way to organize the weekend’s plans, than with an itinerary that allowed each girl to know exactly what to expect and be prepared on time. Of course there was still plenty of room for spontaneous adventures in the city that is known as the “Heart of Mexico.” Everyone enjoyed the carefully curated weekend that included: rooftop drinks during sunset, hot yoga in the morning, and time spent shopping along the famous streets of San Miguel. An itinerary is the perfect touch to any trip, as well as, a bonus keep sake for everyone to remember the fun
for many years to come. The colors and design for this project were inspired through and through by San Miguel’s rich history, colorful architecture, fashion, art, textures and cobblestone streets. Happy 30th Birthday Pauline! When’s the next trip?!
The Exploration
of Lewis and Clark
As a designer, I am constantly exploring and discovering new ways to innovate. The correlation between design and journeying inspired this project.
Two explorations have been conjoined: the famous 1804–1806 expedition of Lewis and Clark, the first American expedition to cross what is now the western portion of the United States; and my own graphic/typographic expedition incorporating photographs of iconic American landscapes and color to engender a sense of exploration and discovery in the minds of my readers.
1804 - 1806
undeclared
beauty
My concept for this book was to create harmony and beauty through text and image, similar to what is explored in the Japanese philosophy of "Wabi-Sabi." I chose to create certain "guidelines" that act as the "perfect" or "norm" and within those, I chose to go against the grain with my text, explore the beauty in the imperfect and accidental. I wanted to let the reader see there is more to design than to follow a grid and structure. I wanted my work to relate to Ulises Carrion's articles but focusing on the way the eye works. Especially with my concept being all about looking at lesser noticed things in life; I enjoyed reading about binary vision in Carrion's articles. With that in mind, I split my book into all left pages are for image, and all my right pages contain text. This allows the readers eyes to focus on those two things, but separately, because they are not together on a spread, but broken up within the book. With this familiarity already established for the reader, I then took advantage on breaking the grid and structure with my placement of the text and image.
billboards
digital & vinyl
Designed over 1,000+ billboards in the Chicagoland Area, both for vinyl and digital displays. Ads are rotated between two brands each month or on a weekly basis depending on location. Worked closely with billboard vendors when pixel issues arose, as well as, scheduling new ads, some of which had specific promotions that needed a tailored schedule. Vinyl billboard designs have longer lead times to ensure a space contract and a proof approval before printing went ahead for a new ad. Every billboard ad is brand approved.
cyber monday
Cyber Monday along with Black Friday are easily some of the busiest online sale days of the year. I designed front-end website banners for Abt.com - a site which sees regular online traffic of about 4.5 million page views a month (holiday weeks/months can see an additional million views). Banners also include Instagram ads, homepage banners and email headers to promote the online sale.
"Cyber Monday was when Abt noticed the biggest change, with sales up 30 percent year over year. That result would appear to confirm that more shoppers are now doing more of their shopping online. The big jump in Cyber Monday sales helped Abt realize an overall 15 percent combined increase in sales in-store and online between Thanksgiving Day and the end of Cyber Monday."
- Chicago Business Journal
don't judge a brew by its cover
Everyone judges products they have never tried before. My concept revolves around choosing photographs that are open to interpretation and misleading, and create an individual story/brand for each of them in the form of beer labels. With a large variety of alcohol for consumers to choose from, having a relatable story with the brand encourages a selection to be made not from physical appeal, but rather personal.