Visual Compass Web Design has always been an Ypsilanti-based tech firm. It was the first graduate of the Ann Arbor SPARK East Incubator in downtown Ypsitlanti. Its first stand-alone office was in downtown Ypsilanti. Its next move up was to Depot Town. Now the 6-year-old firm is taking over one of Depot Town's largest office spaces.
"After a year we basically filled the space (its previous office)," says
Vince Chmielewski, president of
Visual Compass Web Design, formerly VC Web Design. "We wanted to hire but didn’t know where to put them."
About the same time longtime Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti staple Fantasy Attic was
closing its doors. Visual Compass Web Design took over the space, and moved right in last year. It now employs 10 people there and is looking to add interns this summer. It recently hired one photographer/UX designer and is looking to hire a software developer.
Visual Compass Web Design’s new home measures out to about 3,000 square feet. The company now has room for things like a dedicated photography studio, which occupies about a third of the square footage near the large historic windows.
"We have been trying to expand our video production services and this is a great space for that," Chmielewski says.
Visual Compass Web Design has doubled its revenue over the last year and is on pace to do it again. It has landed new clients, like
Perfect Tacos, which owns 160 Taco Bell franchises. Visual Compass Web Design is also looking to add more work in graphic design and animation.
"We're trying to do a lot more mobile application development," Chmielewski says.
Source: Vince Chmielewski, president of Visual Compass Web Design
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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