it started with a sketch
As a member of carter’s brand marketing team, I played an integral part in the production of a new palleted display program for one of our largest buyers, Sam’s Club. Our team was challenged to design a display that could be pre-packed with merchandise and shipped direct to nearly 600 stores. This project came with challenges which I played a huge part in overcoming.
A Team of Three:
myself, a visual designer, and the marketing director
My roles in the project were:
•project management
•vendor research
•vendor management
•structural design
•production
•plannogram
•testing
vendor is paramount
For this project to be successful, we had to partner with the right display vendor with the production and fulfillment capabilities for a project of this scale.
I was tasked to research display vendors and present my selection to the team. After comparing the capabilities of several vendors, Meridian Display was the clear choice and ultimately contracted for these reasons:
•experience
•printing power
•warehousing (space to hold over 300,000 units)
•fulfillment and shipping capabilities
•security (lockdown for product)
Design:
The initial sketch was created by our marketing director who took into account capacity. I took this initial sketch and created the project plan and specifications. Specs were shared with Meridian to start the initial prototype.
Testing:
I tested the prototype by shipping it fully packed from St. Paul, Minnesota to our office in Atlanta. The prototype was closely examined by the team for durability, functionality and design. Most of the garments had shifted during transit so I ordered additional supports such as shrink wrapping and inserts.
Problem Solving:
After the initial prototype had been designed, the buyer requested a substantial increase in the number of sku’s per display. This meant that the display had to be redesigned to accommodate the added product and the increase in weight. To solve these issues, I increased the length of each hanger arm from 8” to 12” and reinforced the infrastructure of the display.
Ready to Ship to Stores:
Having successfully designed, produced and tested the display, I met my deadline and displays shipped to Sam’s Club stores across the country.
“A huge success!”
This display program, a first of its kind, was so well received by
Sam's Club that it was ordered for several additional seasons.
