Today we’d like to introduce you to Johnny Lemoine.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
As a little boy, I was building cities in our basement without the slightest idea it would shape who I wanted to become. Neighborhoods made from Erector sets, blocks, string, scraps of wood, whatever I could get my hands on. I laid out roads, lined up buildings, and placed things where they felt right. I imagined how the people who lived in them would actually feel. I even remember making sure each building got sufficient natural lighting. I also didn’t overthink it. It was just something I did, like it was my duty. That basement, just outside of Boston, Massachusetts, was the first place I felt fully creative. I felt connected to something bigger. Some kind of universal creativity moving through me. It helped me cope with a lot of tough moments in our house, and the even tougher ones outside of it. I was making sense of things by putting worlds together the way I believed they ought to be.
When someone asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, I said “architect.” I just proudly blurted it out without hesitation.
That kind of early play and exploration gave me confidence. I didn’t question my creativity. I trusted it. It felt like it had my back no matter what. I earned my Bachelor and Master’s degrees in Architecture and carried that focus into agency life. Over time, I realized I wanted more freedom in how I expressed ideas. I wanted to explore identity, packaging, storytelling, space, and design all at once. That pushed me to start my own studio.
My sensitivity and my connection to something deeper have always been my compass. This continues to guide me.
Today I run Lemoine. I work with people who care deeply about what they’re building. I take my time. I stay honest. Whether I’m designing a brand, a website, a book, or a home, I build it with absolute intention.
This is the work I have always been here for. And I am just getting started.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It hasn’t been a smooth road. Like most entrepreneurs, I’ve faced my share of challenges: burnout, uncertainty, financial strain, loss of direction, and tough clients. I used to cope by avoiding, distracting, and numbing. Eventually, that led me to sobriety—and sobriety changed everything. It cracked me open and gave me a new way to move through the world. A new way to create, from within.
The deeper healing came through meditation, yoga, and breathwork. These practices became my foundation. They bring me back to myself. They remind me I don’t have to force or fix everything. I can meet what arises with calm, love, and compassion. That’s been the greatest shift. I’ve learned that compassion dissolves obstacles. Gratitude moves mountains. Together, they’ve become my guiding light through every difficult moment.
The pandemic brought a lot to the surface. It stripped away the noise and made me sit with what I’d been trying to outrun. That period helped me let go of what no longer served me and make space for the work I was truly meant to do.
Now I meet challenges differently. I don’t run from them or bury them down deep inside. I stay present. I trust there’s something here for me to learn. And I keep moving forward, one beautiful breath at a time.
And there is always something there for me to learn.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a designer, brand strategist, and artist. I help people bring their vision to life through brand identity, packaging, digital design, and storytelling. I work with founders, wellness brands, food companies, musicians, and artists who are creating something with meaning.
My foundation is in architecture. That training never leaves you. It teaches you to study people. Their behavior. Their patterns. Their emotional response to space, light, texture, and flow. It gives you a deep respect for how humans move through the world. There is a science to how we interact with environments. What makes someone feel safe. What sparks curiosity. What gets remembered. What fills up the heart and what eases the nervous system.
That same sensitivity applies to everything I create in my studio. There is no difference between walking into a thoughtfully designed space and interacting with a brand you love. A label, a homepage, a piece of packaging. It is all experience. It is all architecture. Just in different forms. When I design, I think about how it feels to move through it. How it holds you. How it speaks without speaking.
My process always starts wide. I zoom out to understand the full ecosystem, the strategy, the story. Then I move in close, shaping every detail to support that vision. That way of seeing, the constant shift between big picture and fine grain, is something I carry from architecture into everything I make.
My studio, Lemoine, reflects that approach. I work with people who deeply care. We build intentionally and with heart. What sets my work apart is the level of thought, the emotional presence, and the belief that great design should feel as true on the inside as it looks on the outside.
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
I’m writing this on a solo road trip from San Diego to Oregon. Right now I’m sitting outside at a light-filled cafe in Portland with my sketchbook and my bike. The bike is covered in dirt from a recent bikepacking trip with friends in the Bay Area. We camped, cycled, jumped off cliffs into swimming holes, and I sketched and took photos of all the places that moved me (which is usually quite a lot).
I just came from a five-day silent meditation retreat, then camped again near Lake Shasta. I spent my days kayaking in the middle of the lake, playing my Native American flute, swimming, writing, and sketching the scenes around me. Trips like this are my great reset. Every time I leave home for a stretch, I come back with a full heart and what feels like infinite inspiration for my work.
Traveling and experiencing the world around me brings me so much happiness. Seeing friends and meeting new ones along the way. Smelling every flower I pass. Meditating when I can. Listening to the stillness or soaking in the energy around me. That’s where I feel most alive. That’s where I feel most myself. And that’s happiness for me.
Pricing:
- Day rate for creative direction and design: $800
- Brand identity packages begin at $6,500
- Packaging design projects begin at $7,500
- Full brand and web packages typically range from $12,000 to $20,000
- Custom proposals available based on project scope and vision
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.johnnylemoine.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lemoinedesign/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lemoinedesign/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/company/johnnylemoine/
- Other: https://www.behance.net/lemoinedesign
