Market research, concept development, industrial design, CMF and engineering, UI/UX mapping and graphics, graphic icon creation, product launch, VBL, product and marketing collateral
​
I began consulting for The Legacy Companies in 2019 and due to very successful industrial design and product development efforts, I haven't stopped. My services started with the design of an entire, new undercounter product line/brand known as Sapphire. As extensive my experience is in the design of wine cellars, it's always a new and unique challenge that presents somewhat of a one-upmanship on the next go-around.
Significant time went into the layouts and combinations of the wine racks; all to maximize capacity, accessibility, visual appeal and the ability to compensate for bottles of all shapes and sizes. All racks are full-extension and vinyl coated to further limit vibration. The same strategy was applied to the beverage center with 12 oz cans and bottles.
For the controls, we decided to move forward with an OLED touch screen, conveniently placed into the top portion of the foamed cabinet, embedded in the liner. Considerable time was spent designing the UI and mapping the control logic, with emphasis on a maximum of 3 touches for navigation to any control function, much like a well designed website...no more than 3 clicks to get where you need.
The Sapphire undercounter product line boasts a very particular shade of dark blue for the liner. After reviewing several samples, we landed on the right color. To properly accent the blue interior, various LED lighting types, temperatures and positions were studied. The result is truly stunning.
Revamping the entire West Bend line of countertop appliances began with a series of detailed VBL exercises. First the team had to agree on 6 words, a combination of rational and emotional descriptors that define the brand. It's much more effective to get a group to agree on verbal descriptors than it is a series of concept renderings. Images are more prone to variation in opinion than words. This also becomes the logical stepping stone into the creation of visuals for the brand. Tone and Manner mapping, using the verbal descriptors, sets the stage for the appropriate development of form. Over the years, I've used this process to help redefine numerous brands, leading to a fully vetted VBL.
With the Tone and Manner mapping completed, it was time to move on to preliminary sketches. These sketches were then converted to quick axonometric renderings. With the VBL, sketches and renderings in place, we had a vetted palette of similar design languages to select from. At this point, all team members have "skin in the game" and are naturally able to formulate a highly educated decision on the best direction to move ahead with.
Here, the skillet is used to illustrate the next steps of refining the form, applying CMF details and finalizing the initial design and VBL. These steps were applied to all of the new West Bend countertop products, 19 in total.
The project for Graef knife sharpeners was predominantly about providing new finishes and adding blue LED's projecting down via light pipes. Graef requested new, innovative finishes to raise the bar against their competitors. Numerous concept finishes were proposed, several of which mimic a carbon fiber pattern using in-mold graphics.
The Omega project was specifically for new juicer and blender product lines. This included the new Omega Intellidial products. After designing the UI/UX and mapping, I created a full series of graphic icons for the Intellidial juicers and blender. This led to the development of the Quick-Start guides with getting-to-know the icons and out-of-the-box product assemblies.
In depth color studies were included for the "Mood" lighting and the products resulting in blue, white and deep red for the main body colors. The "Mood" light has several color options to select from built into the control function
"Kevin and I worked together again, during our joint consulting projects for The Legacy Companies. The first project was the design and development of the high-end Sapphire brand of undercounter appliances, which, when completed, resulted in 3 product lines at different price points. During this time work continued on the market research, complete refresh and rebranding of the entire West Bend countertop appliance line, several new products for the Omega line, Excalibur dehydrators and Graef knife sharpeners. We make a strong team with our combination of skill sets. Kevin is highly recommended, completely dedicated and great to work with!"
​
Marketing Consultant, The Legacy Companies