Mass-market surface design
The Process: Developing collections for nationwide retailers
In 2018, the JOANN buying team approached us to develop Q2 collections for their impulse section.
Our sales rep, Department Head, and production team selected the appropriate stationery items to present based on price point. Then our job in the design department began.
As the lead in-house designer and project manager in the NYC office, I developed the art provided by JOANN, adding seasonal sentiments and foil embellishments. I narrowed in on a selection of the strongest, most saleable prints. Extra care was taken to ensure the final collection would tell a cohesive story on the shelf.
Project Management
I delegated the project amongst our design team of four. In addition to design, I was responsible for: managing the timeline, acting as the main point person between sales and production, approving art layouts and ensuring samples and final layouts were received, reviewed and approved on time.
I laid out our proposed designs into a planogram displaying the full collection, and prepared the presentation deck for the sales rep. Our work was overseen with final approval by the head of the stationery department and then presented to our client by the sales rep.
Our designs were selected, produced and sold in stores across the country in summer 2019.
high-volume holiday
Designing home decor box collections at scale
I was responsible for art sourcing, interpreting trend guides and overseeing the design development and production of hundreds of Christmas home decor boxes for multiple tier-1 retail and nation-wide craft stores.
As Lead Designer, my role for holiday began by sourcing art from licensors and developing it to match the vision of each client’s unique holiday trend guides.
Trend shopping provided design inspiration and informed styles, colors of the moment, and material trends.
After sourcing and developing the art, I delegated the projects between the designers and myself. Between each account, hundreds of designs were needed.
I was the main point person for sales and production, managing the output of the design team and preparing the final presentation for the buyers.
I assisted during the buyer’s meetings at JOANN, Tuesday Morning and Michaels headquarters alongside our sales rep and Department Head. I was responsible for relaying the buyer’s notes to the design team, overseeing the edits and the final turnaround of the project.
Once the final SKUS were selected by the buyers, I managed the development of the production layouts, implementing systems to ensure a smooth process, approving samples and final production.
Each holiday we designed hundreds of linesheets, resulting in the selection and production of 30-50 seasonal gift box sets per account. Our work was sold in stores across the country.