THE CHALLENGE: DESIGN A BASIC 4-PIECE STORAGE SET THAT LOOKS ELEVATED BUT MEETS COST TARGETS FOR OFF-BRAND AND CLUB STORES.

THE APPROACH: FOCUS ON QUALITY AND DETAILS THAT INCREASE PERCEIVED VALUE. CREATE A RIGID INTERNAL STRUCTURE FOR DURABILITY. APPLY TEXTURED FABRIC FOR A SOFT BUT ELEVATED LOOK. INTRODUCE ROUNDED CORNERS AND CUT-OUT HANDLES FOR USABILITY. USE COLOR-BLOCKING TO ADD VISUAL IDENTITY AT LOW COST.‍ ‍ ‍ ‍

DESIGN DEVELOPMENT: EARLY SKETCHES SEARCHED FOR DETAILS AND FORMS TO CREATE VISUAL INTEREST FOLLOWED BY MORE REFINED RENDERINGS THAT EXPLORED MATERIALS AND COLOR CHANGES.ULTIMATELY, I USED WOVEN FABRIC FOR THE EXTERIOR AND A NON-WOVEN FABRIC FOR THE INTERIOR SURFACES, BOTH ADHERED TO A SOLID SUBSTRATE FOR STRENGTH. COLORED BURLAP WRAPPED HANDLES AND TRIM ADDED TEXTURE AND INTEREST. COMBINING 3 MATERIALS ALLOWED ME TO MAKE COLOR AND MATERIAL CHANGES FOR MANY VARIATIONS.

RETAIL STRATEGY: EFFICIENT NESTING AND SHIPPING. MULT-COLOR PROGRAM S ACROSS ALL SEASONS. STRONG SHELF PRESENCE IN HIGH-VOLUME ENVIRONMENTS.

THE OUTCOME: SOLD ACROSS MULTIPLE SEASONS. DISTRIBUTED THROUGH TJX AND COSTCO MEXICO. EXPANDED INTO MULTIPLE COLORWAYS AND VARIATIONS.

KEY TAKEAWAY:‍‍ ELEVATING “BASIC” PRODUCT DOESN’T REQUIRE HIGHER COST, IT REQUIRES BETTER DECISIONS IN MATERIAL, FORM AND DETAIL.

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