Challenge
Wholesale homewares to retail giant
To secure a multi-million dollar deal with Costco to sell a new range of sports towels, William A McNeil & Co, a wholesale homewares company want to showcase some initial design concepts.
Costco typically doesn't order unseen products. Attractive and functional packaging combined with high-quality towels to grab their attention and increase our negotiating power.
To help secure the deal, my role as Senior Design Lead was to create and present compelling concept designs that addressed both the functionality of the towels and the visual appeal of the packaging for a Costco audience.
Timeline: 2 weeks
Role: Lead Designer
Tools: Adobe Creative Cloud
Role: Lead Designer
Tools: Adobe Creative Cloud
Approach
User research drives winning towel strategy
To understand Costco's needs, conducted researched Costco's target market and buying habits for similar products.
• Retail market research, trends analysis, desktop research, field research
• Competitor and SWOT analysis
• Retail market research, trends analysis, desktop research, field research
• Competitor and SWOT analysis
Identified four key themes driving user needs:
1. Value and bulk, Costco shoppers want towels priced competitively and offered in bulk quantities. Many Costco shoppers are families.
2. Costco shoppers expect durable and high quality products, functionality is important.
3. General market trend towards healthy and sustainable options.
4. Unique offering from other brands in the same category.
1. Value and bulk, Costco shoppers want towels priced competitively and offered in bulk quantities. Many Costco shoppers are families.
2. Costco shoppers expect durable and high quality products, functionality is important.
3. General market trend towards healthy and sustainable options.
4. Unique offering from other brands in the same category.
Outcome
Winning towel design drives sales success
3-5 seconds to capture shopper attention at the shelf:
1. Presented three different design concepts to stakeholders to ensure buy-in. Created mockups of the towels and packaging to clearly communicate the design intent for each design option.
1. Presented three different design concepts to stakeholders to ensure buy-in. Created mockups of the towels and packaging to clearly communicate the design intent for each design option.
2. Secured multi-million dollar deal, our winning design for sports towels captured Costco's attention and secured the lucrative contract.
3. Shelf appeal in seconds, attractive packaging and clear communication grabbed shoppers' attention within a few crucial seconds. Developed a desirable product that appealed to the target market.
4. Functionality for families, towels offered in packs of 3, in various sizes, and in easy-care materials (machine washable, dryer-safe) for family convenience. Offered in a variety of colours and design combinations to visual appeal and cater to different preferences.
5. Eye-catching and engaging packaging design, that communicated quickly and clearly the feature and benefits of the product. Unique to market, die-cut openings to allow consumer product interaction. Segmented market for a more tailored approach (male target design on one side, female on reverse).
6. Appealed to environmentally conscious consumers with fully recyclable packaging, and towels incorporate 20% recycled fibres.
National and international success, the winning design launched in Australian Costco stores, followed by repeat orders with updated packaging. Secured further deals for the same product in Southeast Asian Costco markets (Japan, Korea, Taiwan) and in New Zealand, and the US.
