My name is Kay Khoo.
I am usually joyful and optimistic but typically cynical.
I have given up the view that design could change the world, but I remain positive that words do influence minds.
I am a reluctant graphic designer. My interests are elsewhere.
I am not a people’s person, but I do enjoy working with people.
I live every day thanking God for giving me another day to live. To live under grace. By grace.
This blog started in 2006. Not as a platform, not as a brand — just someone writing down what they were thinking, because there was no one around to think with. Some of it was useful. Some of it was wrong. All of it was honest.
I gave up for a while. Consistency is a tough thing to maintain. In 2021 I brought the archive back — nineteen years of notes, observations, arguments, and the occasional confession. It is still the same thing it always was. Random notes, thoughts, vents and musings.
If you find something useful in here — good. If you disagree with something — say so. That’s the whole point.
About me.
I build platforms. I fix brand systems. I create things that, hopefully, outlast the brief.
Over the past two decades, across India and Southeast Asia, I’ve co-founded conferences, launched magazines, set up design systems for large organisations, and established wayfinding blueprints for UNESCO Heritage sites. Some of it worked well. Some of it, I look back at and cringe slightly. That’s fair.
Today I work with brands on content strategy, creative direction, and communications — across digital, print, and on-ground experiences. I speak at design events and run workshops on idea creation and project planning. Because some things are worth sharing before they get lost in a brief.
Currently building two large-scale intellectual properties — one for the marketing fraternity, one for architects and interior designers. Early days. Quietly exciting.
In India:
- Co-founded Kyoorius Designyatra — now one of the more respected design conferences globally.
- Launched ZeeMelt, a Marketing Festival. The name happened on a hot Mumbai noon at Salt Water Café in Bandra.
- Creative directed all 29 issues of Kyoorius Magazine.
- Worked with Asian Paints on community platforms and content systems for architects and interior designers.
- Set up design systems for Birla Opus before the brand went live.
- Led the large-scale brand rollout for Godrej Interio — from granular design details to retail store communications and public-facing signage across 600+ stores nationwide.
In Southeast Asia:
- Established the wayfinding blueprint for Penang Georgetown upon its UNESCO Heritage designation.
- Launched the Malaysian Insider.
- Created Antalis 10-20-30, recognising emerging design talent across the region.
- Launched kancilawards.com in 2006 — the digital platform documenting the best advertising and media work from Malaysia.
Co-founder: Fish Do It, Mumbai · Some Early Birds, Malaysia
If any of this sounds like something worth a conversation — get in touch.