We Turn Creativity into a Scalable Business Force: Elena Herweyer of Art Fresh Inc. on Why Vision Needs Precision to Unlock Growth

By Elena Herweyer, Founder, President & Chief Executive Artist, Art Fresh Inc.

Whenever people ask how I became a creative entrepreneur, I always go back to where it began, Kyiv, my home city, the city I totally love that taught me how to turn imagination into action.

Life in Ukraine gave me more than an excellent education and invaluable experience working with some of the world’s most recognized international brands, including Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Procter & Gamble, L’Oréal, Giorgio Armani, Novo Nordisk, and Mercedes-Benz. It shaped how I see the world. In a place where history, innovation, high tech, abundance of natural resources, fortitude, and vision coexist, creativity wasn’t optional. It was essential. It wasn’t about self-expression or luxury. It was how you solved problems, how you built something from nothing.

As a child, I was surrounded by beauty that grew out of resilience. Kyiv’s grand architecture, the calm of its natural landscapes, and the lively folk art and music that filled the streets shaped how I saw the world. Even in the Soviet Union, where resources were scarce, people found ways to create wonder with whatever they had. That’s where I learned that creativity and resourcefulness are inseparable. When you don’t have everything, you invent. You adapt. You build.

Years later, that same mindset became the foundation for my company, Art Fresh Inc. What started as a small, one-person creative studio in Kyiv has grown into an award-winning creative marketing and branding agency in Canada, one that now partners with clients across North America and Europe. Along the way, we have earned more than 20 national and international awards, including the 2025 Gold Award from the Summit International Awards (USA) for She Organic, a brand that proves creativity and purpose can move markets.

But awards aren’t what drive me. What matters most is using creativity as a force for transformation and proving that imagination, when paired with precision, can build extraordinary results for our clients.

How Kyiv Shaped My Thinking and Leadership

When I immigrated to Canada, I had no network, no work experience in the new country, and a new language to master. What I did have was a mindset: see possibility where others see limits.

Starting over was not easy. There were countless things to adapt to and more than a few hard lessons along the way. But I always believed in myself and leaned on what Kyiv had taught me, to find structure within chaos and resilience amid change. Those lessons became the foundation of how I lead and how I build businesses today.

I believe in vision with structure. My role as a leader is to paint the big picture, and then design the framework that brings it to life with clarity, creativity, and purpose.

That’s where my greatest strength lies. I have always been able to bridge two worlds that rarely meet, visionary creativity and pragmatic precision. Most people thrive in one or the other, big-picture dreaming or meticulous execution. For me, they have always coexisted. I don’t just dream bold ideas, I build the roadmaps, budgets, and systems to make them real.

That balance, creative thinking fused with business precision, is what sets Art Fresh apart. It’s why our work resonates with both hearts and minds.

The Traits That Carried Me Forward

Looking back, three personal qualities shaped my journey more than anything else, creativity, precision, and curiosity.

Creativity is my native language. Ideas flow naturally because I am endlessly curious. I find inspiration in the smallest moments, whether it’s a piece of music, a painting, a conversation, or a walk by the ocean. But curiosity alone is never enough. Ideas only matter when they’re executed with discipline.

That’s where precision comes in. I am deeply analytical about how things get done. Every project at Art Fresh starts with a system that includes timelines, deliverables, and measurable outcomes. Creativity fills the canvas, but precision defines the frame.

This dual mindset, both artist and strategist, is not something I developed intentionally. It is simply how I am wired. It is what allows me to lead a business that thrives on both imagination and structure, emotion and logic.

Navigating the Creative Industry as a Woman Leader

Let’s be honest. Being a woman in business, especially in the creative industry, can come with unspoken challenges.

Early in my career, I would walk into meetings and people would assume I was ‘the designer,’ not the CEO. I didn’t correct them. I simply let the work speak. Over time, precision and performance shifted perceptions faster than words ever could.

That experience taught me something invaluable: the best way to change how people see you is to deliver results that can’t be ignored.

So, I built Art Fresh around that philosophy of creative ideas backed by accountability and storytelling supported by strategy.

Our recent Gold Award from the Summit International Awards (SIA) in the USA for She Organic is the perfect example. The project wasn’t just about beautiful packaging or marketing strategy. It celebrated a purpose-driven brand that tackled a real social issue, becoming the business engine. For me, that’s what creative leadership looks like in action, art that drives outcomes.

Moments That Defined My Leadership

Some moments in business stay with you forever.

Winning our first international award in SIA in Boston, USA for the Art Fresh Self-Promotion campaign was one of them. That recognition told me that a small agency from a small island could compete with the best in the world.

Another defining moment came during a crisis. A client’s promotional campaign had completely fallen apart just days before their event launch as their marketing company had walked away. They called us in as a last resort. We could have declined. The deadline was impossibly tight. But instead, my team and I spent three sleepless nights rebuilding everything from scratch. The campaign launched on time and helped the client exceed their attendance goals within days.

That experience reminded me of a truth I live by: creativity isn’t about mood boards—it’s about solving real problems under real pressure.

But the most transformative lesson came later, when I realized that leadership isn’t about doing everything yourself. It’s about empowering others to grow alongside you. When my team and I began approaching each project as true partners, diving deep into our clients’ businesses to understand the heart of their brands and uncover what drives their growth, our creativity soared.

Leadership, I have learned, is about direction, trust, and genuine collaboration. Not cookie-cutter solutions.

Where Art Meets Business

I have never believed that art and business belong in separate worlds. To me, they’re partners in the same dance. Business is an act of creation, and creativity is a form of strategy. Every brand we build at Art Fresh is designed to be emotional, visual, and economic all at once.

When I design, I am not just thinking about aesthetics. I am thinking about human behavior, clear communication of value, and long-term brand positioning. The most powerful brands connect logic with emotion, where design serves a strategic purpose and strategy, in turn, tells a deeply human story. That’s why I describe myself not as a CEO, but as a Chief Executive Artist. My job is to bridge imagination with implementation, vision with viability. That’s how great ideas become profitable realities.

Culture by Design

Culture doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built with intention.

At Art Fresh, we have created a space where freedom and discipline coexist. Long before the pandemic reshaped how the world works, our international team was already collaborating remotely, connected by trust, creativity, and shared purpose. Everyone has the freedom to explore, experiment, and innovate, but every idea must stand up to strategic rigour. One of our guiding principles is that if it doesn’t add value, it doesn’t leave the studio.

We are constantly learning, testing, and evolving, embracing AI tools and behavioural analytics to stay ahead of change. Yet no matter how advanced technology becomes, creativity and storytelling remain deeply human, and that is something I insist on.

It’s this unique combination of creativity, global experience, professional growth, curiosity, structure, and accountability that makes clients, from luxury hospitality brands to Canadian government health organizations, trust us to turn complexity into clarity.

Art Fresh Today: Innovation and Growth

Today, Art Fresh is a boutique agency with global reach and big ambition. We collaborate with organizations across Canada, the U.S., and Europe to help them tell better stories and achieve measurable growth. We have invested in AI-powered business management tools, emotional storytelling, and human-centered brand systems that combine data and creativity in powerful ways.

Our recent Gold Award for She Organic was more than a recognition. It was proof that smart, purpose-driven creativity delivers results. We’re not chasing trends. We’re defining what innovative, human branding looks like in the AI era. To me, that’s the next frontier of marketing: brands that think intelligently, feel authentically, and act purposefully.

Advice to Women Entrepreneurs

If I could offer one piece of advice to women entrepreneurs, it would be this: never shrink your complexity to fit a label. You can be both creative and analytical. Visionary and detail-oriented. Dreamer and doer. That duality is not a contradiction, but your edge.

Don’t wait for the ‘perfect moment’ to start. It doesn’t exist. Every challenge you face will teach you something that prepares you for the next stage. And don’t rely on others to define your value. Say it. Own it. Live it.

Success isn’t linear. It’s a rhythm of challenges, pivots, and breakthroughs. When you lead with clarity, balance imagination with structure, and surround yourself with likeminded people who believe in your vision, you can build something truly meaningful, brands that not only stand out in the market but also leave a lasting impact on people’s lives.

What’s Next

Our focus at Art Fresh is on growth, innovation, and impact. We are partnering with businesses and organizations that value integrity, creativity, and measurable results; brands that want to evolve, not just advertise.

Our mission is to help businesses thrive in a world reshaped by technology, while keeping the human story at the center. We’re merging timeless brand identity with modern intelligence, designing systems that scale storytelling without losing soul. For me, leadership is still a journey, not a title. From Kyiv to Canada, it has always been about connecting art and business, vision and precision, and creativity and purpose.

That’s not just how I work. It’s who I am.

I don’t just dream big; I build the road to get there.

Because when imagination meets structure, business becomes more than a vehicle for profit. It becomes a force for transformation.

ABOUT | ELENA HERWEYER

Elena Herweyer is the Founder, President & Chief Executive Artist of Art Fresh Inc., a multi-award-winning Canadian creative marketing and brand design agency based in Prince Edward Island. A Chartered Marketer (CMA) and international design juror, she has more than 20 years of experience helping organizations across North America and Europe grow through strategic creativity. Her agency has earned 22+ top international awards, including the 2025 Gold Award from the Summit International Awards (USA) for She Organic.

Recognized for her rare ability to unite visionary creativity with pragmatic precision, Elena builds brands that connect with both hearts and minds, and turn imagination into measurable success.

I don’t just dream bold ideas, I build the roadmaps, budgets, and systems to make them real.