After graduating, Nagata started in WATG after responding to an advertisement. He was contacted by the organization after submitting an application for a vacation offer. ” It was about going to these prestigious hotels that WATG had created. Sometimes I just wanted to go on holiday”, Nagata chuckled. He received a lot more money at WATG than he did the award, though.
His theory and technique were influenced by the company. In specific, Nagata credits three coaches. ” The second, Don Goo, was a really good business and presenter. He had a strong grasp of the big picture and had develop these concepts that appeared to be quite unconventional. My next leader Kevin Chan, who was also a lover, taught me about style. When I first joined the company, I had only graduated and had no idea what place and proportion were. He would say: ‘ Do n’t design a column based on it being 600mm in diameter on plan, design it based on the proportions of a space ‘”, Nagata recalled.
From a second mate Eugene Wanatabe, he learnt the technical aspects of infrastructure. ” I remember a year out of college, I had designed a twisted screen for a building. It looked great and was constructed. But the contractors could n’t get it to site because it was too big”, Nagata mused. Eugene taught me that you have to consider about how to build beautiful points before making them.
Nagata became WATG’s youngest mate in 2006 when he left to form Blink Design Group at the age of 35. He attributes it to the ideal setting. When I first started working for the company, it was during the economic downturn, when several persons were laid off. Immediately when I looked round, it was just me, the lovers and a few individuals in between. Because the company was smaller, I had the opportunity to work immediately with the partners. It even boosted my job as they gave me some possibilities”, Nagata said.