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Posted: Wed 24th Jun 2026
8 min read
When Roberta Rechena launched Core & Form Design Studio in 2020, she wasn't following a carefully mapped-out business plan.
In fact, she was returning to a profession she thought she'd left behind for good.
Today, the Dublin-based designer helps founders and small business owners build brands and websites that reflect who they are and where they're going. She has developed her own trademarked methodology, launched a podcast and course, and earned industry recognition, including Network Ireland's One to Watch award in 2025.
But for Roberta, the achievement she's most proud of isn't the awards or business growth, it's having the courage to start again.
Design was always the plan. As a teenager growing up in Portugal, Roberta was fascinated by advertising, graphics and creativity. She spent five years studying communication design and graduated determined to build a career in the industry. But the reality was very different.
After several years working in agencies and design roles, low salaries and limited opportunities made it difficult to build the future she wanted.
She explains:
"I loved design, but I couldn't see how I could create the life I wanted from it at the time."
A temporary administrative role at a local hospital was supposed to last just three months. Instead, it became the beginning of a completely different career path.
Over the next decade, Roberta worked across operations, business administration and project management roles, eventually progressing into finance management positions after moving to Dublin with her husband and young family.
Although she enjoyed much of the work, there was always a lingering feeling that she wasn't using the skills she had spent years developing.
The turning point came in 2019. After being made redundant from a role she enjoyed, Roberta quickly accepted another position while navigating a house move and family responsibilities.
The new workplace proved to be a toxic environment. Experiencing bullying, constant negativity and a severe loss of confidence forced her to ask herself a difficult question: “What actually makes me happy?”
The answer surprised her – design.
During her daily train journeys, she began sketching and creating illustrations on her iPad. What started as a creative outlet soon reminded her of something she'd almost forgotten – how much she loved the work. Eventually, she made the decision to leave the job.
She says:
"I reached a point where I realised life is too short to spend it being unhappy."
Returning to design wasn't straightforward. After more than a decade away from the industry, Roberta had no portfolio, no network of design contacts and no client referrals. She began redesigning old projects, creating new concepts and sharing them online simply because it made her happy.
Posting regularly on Instagram and participating in Facebook groups helped her rebuild confidence and showcase her work. Then something unexpected happened. People started reaching out.
Her first clients came from Canada and the Netherlands – complete strangers who discovered her online and trusted her with their brands even though she was essentially starting from scratch.
By January 2020, Core & Form Design Studio was beginning to take shape. For the first time in years, Roberta felt she was exactly where she was supposed to be.
Just weeks after signing her first clients, tragedy struck. Roberta's father died suddenly. At the same time, the world was entering lockdown. This experience could have easily stopped the business before it even began. Instead, she channelled her grief into building something meaningful.
She notes:
"Some of the business was built through grief and tears. But it also came from a determination to make something positive out of a difficult time."
While navigating loss, she continued to serve clients, refining her offerings and laying the foundations for what would become a successful studio. Even now, she acknowledges that grief never fully disappears. But the experience reinforced a lesson that continues to shape her business today: life is too short not to pursue work that matters to you.
Starting again in her late 30s brought another challenge. Many of the designers Roberta followed online were in their 20s, and she worried she had missed her opportunity.
"I felt like I was too old and that maybe everyone else was ahead of me," she says.
At the same time, she was learning how to run a business from the ground up. Unlike many entrepreneurs, becoming a business owner had never been part of her plan.
Understanding marketing, finances, systems and sales required an entirely new skill set. Yet the experience she'd gained during her previous career turned out to be one of her biggest advantages.
The operational and business knowledge she had developed over the years helped her build a studio with strong foundations, while her life experience gave her a deeper understanding of the clients she serves.
Today, much of Roberta's work comes through Google search, referrals and her online presence. She believes clients connect with her because of her authenticity and ability to understand the people behind the business.
"I'm a good listener," she explains. "I take the time to understand what someone is trying to achieve and then translate that into a visual identity that feels like them."
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That approach has helped clients gain confidence in their businesses, increase visibility and achieve significant growth. Some of the brands she's worked on now appear in major Irish and UK retailers, including products sold through Brown Thomas, Arnotts and Selfridges.
But for Roberta, the greatest success stories aren't measured by revenue alone.
"The biggest transformation is often confidence," she says. "When people feel proud of their brand and are excited to show up in their business, everything else becomes easier."
Having rebuilt her career from the ground up, Roberta is passionate about encouraging others who feel drawn towards a different path. Her advice, however, is more practical than inspirational.
Rather than simply telling people to "follow their dreams", she recommends creating a safety net first.
“Build savings. Create a plan. Give yourself some financial breathing room,” she advises. “But most importantly, don't allow age to become a reason not to start.”
Six years after launching Core & Form Design Studio, Roberta has built a thriving business, developed her own intellectual property and established herself as a recognised expert in her field. Yet when she reflects on the journey, one achievement stands above everything else.
"I thought I'd lost my identity as a designer," she says. "What I'm most proud of is proving to myself that I could start over and find it again."
