In short
- At seventeen a teacher told me I'd never be anything if I skipped university.
- I laid bricks by day, freelanced by night and eventually built my own agency, TH3M.
- Years later I went back to my old school to thank him, because his words became fuel.
"Boy, You'll never be anything in life if you skip University"
Those words have echoed in my head for more than two decades.
I was seventeen when my design technology teacher, Mr Griffiths, said them to me. I had just told him I was leaving school to work with my dad as a bricklayer. I had a plan to save enough money to buy a workstation and the software I needed to start my design journey. He didn't see it that way. He saw a young lad throwing away his future because it didn't fit the traditional route.
What he didn't realise was that his words didn't crush me. They ignited something. Every time things got tough, every time I questioned myself, I would hear his voice. It became the spark that kept me moving forward.
Bricklaying taught me more about life than any classroom ever could. Cold, wet 5 a.m. starts, long days, and harder nights. I would come home exhausted and go straight into freelancing until the early hours. For a long time it was unpaid work, done just to build a portfolio. It taught me discipline, patience, and how to keep showing up when nobody was watching.
It also taught me people. On-site one week with down-to-earth grafters, the next on a multi-million-pound build. I learned how to adapt, how to read people, and when to turn the banter on or off. My dad was brilliant at that. He could talk to anyone, and I soaked it up without realising it. Those lessons shaped everything I am today.
Eventually, I built enough clients to go full-time. I left the trade with calloused hands, a stronger mind, and the kind of confidence you only get from building things that last.
Fast forward to today, I run my own agency, TH3M. I have worked with brands I once only dreamed about: Bentley, The Royal Mint, Sony, Under Armour, Coinbase, VeChain, and so many incredible startups full of fearless founders. I have been lucky enough to travel the world, raise two amazing children, marry the love of my life, and know my parents are proud of the man I have become.
From bricks to brands
How the wall went up.
Laid from the bottom, one course at a time.
- 0117 Told I'd never be anything if I skipped university
- 02Left school to lay bricks with my dad
- 035 a.m. Starts on site, then freelancing until the early hours
- 04Unpaid work, just to build a portfolio
- 05Enough clients to go full-time
- 06Started my own agency, TH3M
- 07Worked with Bentley, The Royal Mint, Sony, Under Armour, Coinbase and VeChain
- 08Went back to my old school to thank him
You build it yourself.
I remember the moment it all hit me. The goals I set back then were complete. Debt-free, family secure, business thriving. For the first time in years, I sat still and thought of Mr Griffiths. How those words stayed with me all this time. How they drove me, even though they were never meant to. Back then, I took them personally. I thought he didn't believe in me. But really, I think he just couldn't see a version of success that didn't fit inside a box.
So one day, I went back to my old school to thank him. Because what he gave me wasn't an insult. It was fuel. And I will always be grateful for it.
I have had setbacks, failures, and moments that nearly broke me. But every one of them built me. From laying bricks to building brands, I have spent my life creating things that stand the test of time.
If there is one thing I have learned, it is this: never let someone else's version of your future become your reality. Because the truth is, nobody gets to decide what you can become. Only you do.
Never let someone else's version of your future become your reality.
And if one teacher's words could light a fire in a kid from Maesteg, maybe your spark is waiting for the right moment too.
From bricks to brands, I learned the foundation never changes. You build it yourself.
