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ABOUT US
where ideas are cultivated.
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“We strive to be living, breathing proof that anyone can make a living in the creative field - doing what they love.”
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OUR VISION
Welcome to Caandor - where ideas meet their creator.
In late 2017, our founders set out to design a new breed of digital agency - fueled by genuine creative curiosity. We opened our doors (a 300 sqft subleased art space - thank you Cultural DC!) with a core set of principles and beliefs that helped us overcome failures, celebrate successes, and sharpen our craft.
Our purpose has unwavered as we continue to create honest content, connect impact-driven voices, and empower the evolving creative specialist through next-gen technologies. In other words, we build digital roadmaps to shared experiences.
Armed with these principles, we have been fortunate to work alongside some amazing teams, inspiring organizations and motivating national brands. This experience was essential as we learned and tinkered with our internal aspirations, and the value we wanted to contribute to the creative community.
Today, we have grown from a local design shop to a multinational creative ecosystem, with our core pillar guiding the way; Creative Storytelling.
While we support organizations that are aligned to our commitment of creating a more equitable and inclusive world - our guiding purpose at Caandor is to become a conduit of change; empowering our local communities and providing real-world opportunities to the evolving creative specialist.
We help businesses of all sizes within multiple verticals. We love crafting beautiful, smart and inspired work that is focused on a business’ purpose & culture. We look forward to working with you and seeing what we can cultivate together.
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Our founders in front of the first studio in NE DC 2018
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Our partnership with DCPS to continue the success of our kids can be big podcast: 2019
MARKETS WE SERVE
B2B & B2C
Great products have great stories, but sometimes they need some fresh perspective to uncover. We run brand discoveries for our clients that want to scale their digital sales, build brand awareness and grow audiences - both existing and untapped. If you have content or want to see how it can be improved, we can help.
Non-Profits & Associations
Part of a large org or non-profit? Do you feel inspired but could use some help developing your fundraising campaign, streamlining your marketing efforts, or simply dial up the creative energy through a team of diverse perspectives? If you're ready for your content to make an impact, we can help.
Education, Institutions & Community Organizers
Our team is composed of continual learners who take this same approach into every aspect of our culture and business principles. We offer on-going trainings and workshops to all of clients and have educational based content packages built to serve.
our company pillars.
We don’t do fast food. We prefer a thoughtful fine crafted meal, handpicked and made with care. We don’t believe in shortcuts and instead prioritize process overspeed.
In addition to our technical expertise, our team is also experienced in various industry domains, including healthcare, retail, technology and community based organizations. This allows us to bring a candid understanding of our clients’ specific challenges and opportunities to develop impact solutions.
Our “buddy system” — we pair two peers for each projects; a designer with another, an engineer with another, and together they collaborate with everyone else.
—the creatives.
our team is far reaching, remote and in-person. our dna consists of designers, producers, innovators, developers, painters, visual artists, strategist, photographers and multi-media artists. these super humans inspire our work and fuel our creative journey.
moss belkessam.
“everyone is creative. it’s just a matter of what inspires you to see it in yourself.”
Moss is an Algerian-born, web designer, photographer, illustrator & creative entrepreneur. He has founded and exited multiple creative businesses including an event ticketing platform and an award winning marketing agency. Moss leads our design-focused client projects and internal Caandor branding efforts. When he’s not working, he’s likely working, or quoting obscure Simpson quotes that may or may not exist. (they exist)
bakari ibrahim.
“change your mind and you change your relation to time.”
Bakari is a Washington DC based producer, animator, & creative entrepreneur. He has 10 + years in content production, event management, and strategic partnerships. Bakari seeks to empower communities through powerful design and storytelling.
—the ecosystem.
Director of Marketing & Strategy
Antonio Caro is our expert content developer. He has a deep understanding of digital and grassroots marketing, specifically in the non-profit and mission oriented verticals. He is a powerful addition to our storytelling approach and getting to the “why” for our clients.
Senior Designer
The Josh Craig is an audio-visual artist and pioneer in the field of applying the psychological effects of sound to create stunning visual landscapes.
senior content strategist
Kierra is our content and systems powerhouse. She has over 10 years of experience providing Booz Allen Hamilton with cross-market solutions to support executive-level decision making regarding organizational priorities, streamlining opportunities, change management systems, process reengineering and manpower planning.
Senior UI/UX Designer & Web Developer
With a background as a fine artist, I have an appreciation for creativity combined with deep technical skill. Proficient in web design, graphic design, motion graphics and web development, my passion for visual excellence is the driving force of everything I create.
Video Producer
International multimedia designer, Matthew Frazier is true essence of a content creator. His focus is on creating unique specialized content for brands, companies and individuals through video, augmented and virtual realities to reach a greater audience within their respective communities.
Senior Video Strategist
Glen is our lead video expert - from strategy and storyboarding to on-site capture and post production. Hes produced content on behalf of the biggest brands and strongest local voices in Washington, DC. He expertise is critial in understanding how our content will live and move in a video-first world.
Senior Graphic Designer
Shaira is our talented graphic designers and social media strategist. She has dedicated her career in helping entrepreneurs and business owners stay relevant in the world of social media while helping other creatives and brands, to design, advise and strategize.
UI/UX Designer
Yonas is a UX designer, researcher and artist based in Washington D.C that loves history, space, and art. He supports our investigations of complex behaviors and psychology of people in order to create custom solutions that improve the experience of users across devices and mediums.
Senior Animator & Illustrator
Ariel is a children's book author/illustrator. Ariel has illustrated Hair Like Me, a mother-daughter journey to natural hair love; My First Book of Shona and Ndebele Words, a language resource for the two native languages of Zimbabwe; and A Promise To Grow in partnership with the non-profit City of Promise. She has worked with The Writer's Center, The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, the U.S. Latinx Writers Gathering, the Washington Writers Conference, and more.
—creative positions.
Join us on creating mission-driven projects that benefit from empathy, analytical thinking, and team collaboration. If this sounds like you - we’d love to hear how we can work together.
Motion Graphics Animator
We are seeking a talented and experienced Motion Graphics Animator & Video Editor to join our creative team at Caandor Labs.
Graphic Designer
We are looking for a highly creative and talented Graphic Designer to join our team at Caandor Labs.
frequently asked, happily answered.
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