Role: Product, Motion, Brand Designer
Timeline: ~2 months
Design Challenge
1. LONG LINES
Long checkout lines, long fitting room lines. Nobody wants to spend their day standing and waiting to be served.
2. INCONVENIENCE
Ever gone to a store only for them to not carry what you wanted? Customers have learned to fear the words "out of stock".
3. LACK OF SUPPORT
There aren't enough workers for customers. This puts stress and pressure onto them to perform and serve. They're busy enough!
4. HEALTH & SAFETY
Especially relevant today, sharing publicly used items can put you and your loved ones at risk. It's much better to use your own things.
5. REDUCING WASTE
Tons of plastic waste is due to the overuse of plastic in retail environments. Things like reusable bags are a must in today's world.
1. CHECKOUT WITHOUT "PAYING"
With korb™, the user's payment card will automatically be charged once they walk out of the store, completely eliminating the need to line up.
2. IN-STORE INVENTORY
Allowing customers to view store-specific inventory will save them a lot of time and energy.
3. MORE INDEPENDENCE
The overall effect of korb™ will be to give more power to the consumer. Everything they need would be on the app and thus allow for an independent shopping experience.
4. LESS UNNECESSARY INTERACTIONS
With the pandemic, limiting unneeded interactions with others is a must. And as previously stated, having a more independent consumer is the best route to take.
5. REUSABLE, HIGH-QUALITY BAG
korb™ bags would ideally be made of durable materials that will withstand years of wear and tear.
The branding process was just one part of this multidisciplinary project. Our team considered korb™ a tech concept first and foremost. Not a shopping one nor a retail one. And so we chose a blue and colder colour palette; something that is seen in a lot of tech companies’ brands.
The submark consists of combining the visual elements of the letter “K”, a shopping cart, and a checkmark into something that was unique and recognizable. Most importantly, it captured what our concept was focused on: in-person shopping. Also, did you know "korb" means "basket" in German?
The key to making a successful app concept was to keep it lean and simple. It’s easy for designers to get sidetracked by all the different roads their project can go down; but I believe it’s a skill to remain focused and design to solve one problem at a time.
Our main focus was to automatically track a customer’s items as they place it within their korb™ bag. All features in the app are only there to assist in such workflow.
1. THE VALUE OF EXPERIENCE
The original idea for a smart bag was mine and came from my personal experience working retail at Uniqlo. I'm glad I was able to bring my real-life experience as both a worker and a customer into a design project in order to solve an issue.
2. COMMUNICATION
Working with Nicole Lozano and Johanna Lim was a joy. We were able to bounce ideas off each other, discuss design choices, and eventually come to a solution we all agreed upon. I've learned the importance of communication and having your own opinion on the things that matter instead of being apathetic towards them.
