stick-it

a senior level studio focused on developing a product that betters the human experience in an outdoor activity, with considerations for packaging, business plan, and producing a set quantity for sale at a pop-up shop

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what outdoor activity needs focus?

i knew almost immediately that i wanted to focus on creating an outdoor toy for children that got them excited about getting away from screens and outside.

but is this a relevant need?

yes! kids on average, only have 4-7 minutes of unstructured outdoor play. in contrast, kids on average spend anywhere from 5-8 hours a day in front of a digital screen

why is play important?

creates neural pathways that act as a road map for further development

teaches kids how to solve complex social and emotional problems

helps children develop their fine and gross motor skills

strengthens vestibular systems responsible for mental alertness

what kinds of outdoor play do kids like?

mud kitchen

building

exploration

role-play

sports

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how can we get kids motivated to go outside and explore?

the sketching stage

for my concepts, i wanted to try and address different elements of play and activities to ensure that i could represent a wide range of play to hopefully maximize the amount of children who could benefit

as i continued to develop my concepts, the idea of a way to fasten sticks together to build what you could imagine began to strongly emerge as the concept. however, it became a bit challenging to figure how the toy would work which means it was onto prototyping and testing

bring it to life

to bring such a simple concept to life is not that simple. however, i first started with exploring with the method of connection. here i realized that the best way was to have some sort of socket the stick fits in and some way of fastening the stick into place. to accomplish this, i began to experiment with tpu flexible plastic to creates forms which would allow bending abilities and could accommodate different sizes of sticks. i also had to figure out how the fastening system would be incorporated within the form

after this experimentation, i found a method that worked and could be manufactured by myself in my apartment...

the hourglass shape allows for varying size for the sticks while also having a smaller middle to allow more flexibility when wanting to bend to create a shape. the flower shape allows the socket to expand for larger sticks or limbs, or fold into itself for thinner sticks or twigs. then, the belt-like loops on the sides help keep the velcro strip in place and makes fastening it around the stick a bit easier because the loops are holding firm on the strip as you tighten

once i had a design fleshed out, it was time for manufacturing. i used my own 3d printer to print 10 units (10 stick-its per unit) made from various colored tpu filament. i was running my printer day and night. i even had to higher a supervisor

how does it work?

place

secure

bend

build!

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making a brand

telling the story

one of the most important things to understand when developing a brand is the story. the why and the how. to address this, we developed storyboards to explain the scenario or environment where this product lives.

creating a unified image

another important part of a brand is its iconography; its logo. i went through several iteration playing around with the visual language of the brand, experimenting on what was eye-catching and also was true to the product. to get the logo you see below, i took apart pieces of previous logos and sort of frankenstein-ed into a cohesive image that was playful, highlighted the product, and fit the scenario it lives in. the colors reflect the colors that the stick-its come in, the silhouettes holding together the letters resembles the actual shape of the product, and the i's are sticks.

evaluating packaging

another important part of a brand is its product packaging. for mine, i wanted something that went beyond the one-use style that most toys come in. i wanted packaging that went beyond just regular packaging, that it functioned as an extension to the product rather than a secondary throw-away item. thats when i settled on a canvas-mesh bag that would act as a carrier for the stick-its but had product information on the exterior to act as its own form of advertising.

the pop-up

finally, the day arrived of the pop-up shop that would prove the product as a viable option and test out how the market reacted to it.

as part of the pop-up, i had to develop a point of purchase display. this display needs to continue the product language and draw focus into the product. some point of purchase displays are standard, think of the box that gum comes in. well, i wanted to create something unique and initiated a conversation about the product.

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