Fire Road
Client: Fire Road
Role: Design Strategist
Timeline: 5 months
Activities: User surveys, user interviews, design strategy, competitive analysis, design thinking workshops/exercises, research synthesis
The Challenge:
As part of a business innovation project, our team was tasked with recommending solutions for Designer Andrew Perkins to implement in his home goods business that would lead to growth. Through our preliminary research, we discovered that Fire Road is in a growing industry but a crowded one. Individuals investing in their homes want unique products that give their homes a personal touch and are willing to pay more for local artists with a story to tell.
As a result, we posed the question: How might we reposition Fire Road’s brand to evoke connection, harmony, and storytelling
Methodology + Process:
We conducted primary + secondary research within the retail home industry. This included user surveys, user interviews, market sizing, and competitive analysis which gave us the following insights:
Individuals are looking for products that speak to them.
The function of a product is key, but it has to look beautiful in their home.
There is a higher willingness to pay for handcraft pieces.
We then worked with Andrew through a series of exercises to understand his vision of the company as well as to understand Fire Road’s strengths and weaknesses. We landed on the following to focus on:
Branding and bring the brand story to life
Making Fire Road a lifestyle brand
Redesign website and improve social media impact
Outcome:
The team left Fire Road with the building blocks to a new brand:
Brand repositioning:
”Fire Road exists to provide shared experiences between people and place. In so doing it provides connection, harmony, and everyday luxury. It does so through the use of American design, storytelling, and craftsmanship.”A brand story that connects users with the products and their maker
A library of photos that reflected the new look and feel of the company.