Colin McLain and I take turns teaching Package Design. Consequently, we share ideas and projects as we continually test and implement the curriculum. Since it was my turn this past semester, I introduced a brand new project addressing shopper market design. I had spoken with Lee Actkinson, designer and production manager at Saatchi & Saatchi X in Northwest Arkansas (NWA) and UAFS GRDS Alumni, who suggested we look into shopper market design for a project. It made perfect sense. After all, more and more of our graduates are finding employment in and around the Walmart-o-sphere in NWA.

We typically break the semester into two major projects. Students design a subscription box service with three content packages for the first half of the semester. Then they would typically design an entire board game from the ground up. The board game project challenged students to build and package a board game from scratch. But, because it is so complex, with so many components it was always a difficult task for the students to complete successfully.

See more student work including subscription box design.

The board game project

I first wrote the board game project for a class called Creative Process in Design. Students would build an entire game, writing rules of play, illustrating and laying out the board and box design, and even 3D printing game pieces. It was a complex process that ended with students applying vinyl to handmade chipboard boxes for a finished after market look. Finally, the whole project would culminate on game day, when all the students would bring snacks and play each others games and writing comments into a critique record. The project was very successful as a creative process exercise. They looked good. One student even had her board game win a National Addy Award.

See more student work including board game design.

The death of the board game project

So, what was the problem with keeping the project in Packaging Design? For one, the project took an incredible amount of time and only resulted in one final product. In the same amount of time, students could have designed a few more packages for more experience. Next, the complexity of the project left a lot of room for failure. Students faced many first time tasks. Some components like measuring and applying the vinyl to the boxes were unforgiving. One mistake and they would have to buy another vinyl print out, which is costly. Many times, at that point, the student was out of time and couldn’t get another print anyway.

In addition, there was new equipment and processes to learn like 3D scanners and printers. If the students fell behind, it was very difficult to catch back up. I noticed that, typically, the students who did well, did very well. However, the projects of students who missed even one or two steps turned into disasters. And if the project was a disaster it would not go into the student’s portfolio. I wanted to make better use of the time. Furthermore, professionals who viewed the board game project in student portfolios, while they liked the project or design, always seemed to question the real world merit.

Northwest Arkansas the Shopper Market Design Hub

Many of our students gravitate to Northwest Arkansas, since the area has so many agencies servicing Walmart. And, because these agencies design for the shopper market, we created a project that speaks directly to the services they provide.

Through the project the students learned about point of purchase, marketing to the shopper as an added layer to the consumer, and creating an in-store experience. They designed packaging for a product with three varieties. For instance, if it was food, then it came in three flavors, products with a fragrance had three scent varieties, etc. They learned to follow complex die lines and print, cut, glue, and fold large mock ups for presentation. The students had great success with this project, even if they did have to wrestle with cardboard sheets that were 6×9 ft. large.

Next the students created a sidekick, which is the small impulse purchase area, just around the corner from an end cap on an aisle. The sidekick was 14″w x 48″h x 4″d and could either have shelves or pegs to hang the product. There were also opportunities to use custom die cuts. Additionally, the students designed a blade, which is a small sign attached to a shelf in the store aisle. All of the components worked cohesively.

Consistent Checkpoints

Lee Actkinson made a class visit and helped present the project and look at sketched ideas from each student. He spoke at length about designing for the shopper market and how that differed from normal consumer marketing. Lee and I spoke with each student about their product and design direction. Then I made sure there were consistent checkpoints for deliverables for just about every class period until the deadline.

Lee gave invaluable information and feedback. He even brought some sample displays down to demonstrate the complex folds and tucks. The students were on point with their ideas and went the extra mile when creating the finished package designs. Some went so far as getting them professionally printed at Graphic Services in Fort Smith and Moxy Ox in Northwest Arkansas.

Project Outcomes

The sidekick projects was a definite win for the students. They got professional interaction in the development stage of the project. Also, the students were treated to a surprise professional critique, thanks to UAFS GRDS alum, and Unsplash Ambassador/Photographer Brook Cagle. They gained experience with a real world project that will be a key component in portfolios, especially if they partner with agencies in the shopper market. On the technical end, they learned to use die lines, fold complex displays, and create stunning, professional mock ups out of overly large and unwieldy material. They created a brand, iterated the product packaging, and carried the branding across multiple assets.

I am very proud of my students accomplishments. They are constantly put under extreme pressure with constant obstacles like running out of printer paper, or being locked out of the cardboard room on a weekend. But they always seem to come through. The students practiced problem solving in many areas with this project, which makes them more valuable to agencies and clients. I think I will be adding this project as a regular for the next few cycles, hopefully getting more successful as we move forward. Take a look at the results below and feel free to send me feedback or suggestions.