Startups are the best!

Another year. Our 30th actually. 

We were a startup once. And in a sense we still are. Because almost every challenge that lands on our laps feels like a fresh start. Old constraints ready to be busted with new ideas. 

Honestly, ever since paper boat happened in 2013, startups and established brands alike reach out and ask us to work up the same magic for their brands. But being a notoriously stubborn team that we are, we start with a strong refusal. We refuse to repeat. We are against “same same”.  But we promise to match your passion & appetite for “new” if you have it. We believe brilliance of our work is directly proportionate to the faith you place in us. It always works that way. 

In 2018, we saw brands being far more inclined towards health & sustainability. What’s in it became a bigger concern for the consumer and food thus became more engaging even before it got consumed. 

Some of them are taking their first steps as you read this and some have spread their wings rather wide. 

So here is a list of five fresh brands we helped build in 2018.

Swing 

A fresh, fun & approachable fruit juice for the joy of its pure & unadulterated taste is how we would describe swing from paper boat! Packaged in signature doy packs, swing promises to bring alive the wind in your hair & spring in your step with its juicy fruity beat. 

On the Run 

As they say, there is only one life! Our big insight? We need to maximize and shine through every role we play. Be it work or relationships, travel or entertainment, we need to be able to give our best. Because life is a sport and we can all be winners. On The Run packaging is a reflection of multiplicity of our lives and how to stay positive through it all by consuming food made with conventional wisdom & goodness.

Epigamia Smoothies

After the stupendous success of epigamia greek yogurts, it was time for smoothies on popular demand. What makes these greek yogurt smoothies remarkable? They are all natural, lactose free & above it all, very very tasty! The bottles are designed to practically twirl & emulate churning of smoothies. Globular shoulder & wider mouth makes it easy to grip & gulp from, whereas loaded fruit visual does justice to what’s inside the bottle. So if you are looking for a tasty protein boost, you know what to reach out for. 

&me 

51% of Indian women are anemic and 70% risk getting osteoporosis due to various deficiencies! This happens because women always put others’ needs before their own & land up neglecting their health. Sad but true. 

&me as the name suggests, is a trigger to remind women that with everything else that is important in life, they need to give themselves equal priority. &me is a brand of Bio-active Beverages for Women. Developed with ancient Ayurveda and modern science to meet the fast-paced lifestyle of modern women, these beverages focus on specific needs. &me professes self-love & self-care. With strong imagery and stories, we intend to start a conversation and help break stereotype.

hydron 

Its clear that functional nutrition needs of men & women are different. Here was our opportunity to turn that into a powerful hydration brand that helps men unleash their potential to the fullest in a healthy way. Hydron as we named it is not your regular thirst quenching water. It is hydrogen rich, anti-oxidant and and simply put, hydrates seven times faster. A highly functional beverage, Hydron alkaline water helps one recover from strenuous activity like workouts or sports very quickly. This is exactly what we brought to life on its packaging. Potency & science. 

Anthropometry for wearables

Anthropometry for wearables

Lack of consolidated Indian & Asian anthropometric data for limbs, head and other body parts presents unique challenges. How does a design team get around to tackle such a challenge?

By ANAND PALSODKAR

Understanding of human anthropometry  is a crucial part of a design process. This is especially true with products like watches, helmets and new age wearable gadgets. These products behave as an extension to a human body and any use of these products resulting in discomfort would lead to a quick failure of the product itself.

‘’ The products we design are going to be ridden in, sat upon, looked at, talked into, activated, operated, or in some way used by people individually or en masse. If the point of contact between the product and the people becomes a point of friction, then the industrial designer has failed. If, on the other hand, people are made safer, more comfortable, more eager to purchase, more efficient-or just plain happier-the industrial designer has succeeded.’’ – Legendary American Designer, Henry Dreyfuss

Globally, designers & engineers rely on anthropometric data studied and compiled by Henry Dreyfuss Associates2. Dreyfuss’s contribution to the field of human factors is seminal, however data points related to specific ethnicities and for new age applications like wearables3 are not comprehensive & at times non existent. Pioneering anthropometric work by Dr. G G Ray4 & Dr. Deb Kumar Chakravarty5 on Indian population does not cover wearable physiological zones in the published version and that creates a large vacuum when dealing with wearable products. The design team working on one such project at Elephant6, came across this chasm and had to modify its approach during the design phase while working for Singapore based technology firm, SynPhNe7.

Undertaking the challenge

The design team embarked upon developing a system of wearable devices for stroke rehabilitation that included an arm gear and a head gear to record the muscle & brain response. The challenges were multifold, the devices had to be used by people suffering from partial paralysis with one of the sides of their body non-functional. The device had to fit arm and head sizes, shapes of population from Indian subcontinents, south-east Asia & China. 

The geometry of Arm and the Head had implications since functioning of the device depended on effective sensor contacts to arm skin and head scalp. Available anthropometric data captures only the dimensions of extremities & body parts, however it was important to study the shapes & specific dimensions of arm and the head to determine the profiles of arm and head gear. Such anthropometric data is not available readily. This momentarily stemmed the development work and subsequently led to carrying out anthropometric study of arm and head of a sample population.

Anthropometric study

In-depth user study revealed certain physical realities about the people who would be using such devices. Women wearing bangles, necklaces and those maintaining plaited hair, tight curly hair and people with baldheads & loose skin, all these added to the complexities. Anthropometric research was planned for a sample population of 50 in India & Singapore each. This sample population included men, women and children above the age of 14.

The study included measurements of arm features, circumference at specific points on arm, thumb & palm measurement. Features like circumference, nasion to inion distance, ear-to-ear distance above head were measured for study of the head anthropometry. 

The anthropometry data was classified based on 95th, 50th & 5th percentile male and female. For effective therapy it was imperative to have accurate locations of sensors for both arm & head gear. Sensor point variations were plotted both for arm & the head based on the profiles derived from this study. This helped the team to design the devices with adequate adjustability built in for the sensors that covered a larger part of the population.

Head shape profiles were studied to design the head gear to ensure positive contact of sensors with scalp. Arm gear profiles at elbow, mid and wrist location led to the design of common set of arm straps for 3 sizes of arm gear; small, medium & large.

Pain gain

Lack of data led the development team on an anthropometric hunt. A critical realization was the requirement of wearable data and its access while undertaking such development work. The design team acquired body part profiles & surfaces that helped design contact elements & affordances in the product system. This critical metric research led to numerous insights for innovative development work. After 4 stages of prototype testing, clinical trials of the beta version of this product system is underway in the US, India and Singapore.

Notes:

1.       Anthropometry is the scientific study of the measurements and proportions of the human body.

2.       Henry Dreyfuss Associates, LLC is one of the oldest & most esteemed industrial design consultancy firms in the      United States, known for their work in human Factors and a series of iconic products.

3.       Wearables is common reference to wearable technology.

4.       Dr. G. G. Ray, Professor, IDC, IIT-Powai, Mumbai & Ramakrishna Bajaj Chair, Honorary Professor, School of Biomedical Engineering, IIT Mumbai.

5.       Dr. Deb KumarChakraborty, Professor & Dean, IIT-Guwahati, author of Indian Anthropometric Dimensions For Ergonomic Design Practice.

6.       Elephant, is a design consulting practice operating in India & Singapore.

7.       SynPhNe, is a technology platform, incubated in Singapore, http://www.synphne.org

ANAND PALSODKAR is a mechanical engineer & post graduate Industrial Designer, Design Director, Product Innovation at Elephant. A post grad alumnus of IIT-Powai, Industrial Design Center, Mumbai, he leads the product development vertical. He has worked on several design programs, notably CEAT Tyres, Nirlep Appliances, Thermax Ltd., Symphony Coolers, Paperboat and works on medical & healthcare devices amongst others.  

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Behind every successful startup, there is Good Design!

ASAP, CIIE-IIM-A incubated Bangaluru startup that created this “on the go” snack, Elephant design helped strategise and communicate a differentiating visual story.

Last few years, India has seen a steady rise in design consulting needs from new mushrooming businesses, commonly referred as ‘Startups’. These are not necessarily the love child of newbies but also some industry veterans or serial entrepreneurs taking on new business challenges, who understands the importance of design. Here, Ashish Deshpande explains the pros & cons of designing for startups.
(As appeared in Creative Gaga)

A motivating enterprise environment in India, propelled by several industry & government initiatives has helped create a breed of entrepreneurs high on enthusiasm, technology savvy and willing to take the risk on new product service formats. Design is playing a crucial role in their journey as well as successes and there is increasing acceptance to the use of design in building a resounding brand & quality of product or service application. Paperboat is great example of a recent startup success story where one can observe design playing a key role. However, working with startups has its own unique hiccups and thrills.

Paperboat. A memory drinks based startup where design added emotive value to the brand, identity, language, pack form function

CHALLENGES with Startups

1. MULTI-ROLE INVOLVEMENT

Let’s face it! Startups are ultra lean. Aligning business & technology solutions to a consumer-focused approach needs to be done at multiple levels. Since most startups, unlike the well-established corporate world, cannot afford multiple experts & agencies, a designer is seen as a ‘fix all’ for several needs. Involvement of a designer or design firm goes beyond a specific design assignment. Designer ends up playing a strategic role, trying to balance business strategy with design, brand image, product, pack, quality, vendor development, applications and point of sale, with key design language & marketing messages.

2. DISTINCT SOLUTION

Most startups are either technology or business focused. Design is a weakness and so is the ability to profile and understand end consumer. Startups tend to get committed too early to a particular tech or proposition without ascertaining appropriateness, uniqueness and distinction of their offering. Despite a new idea, most times, the end offering is neither distinct enough, nor is perceived value appreciable. This grave omission places the fledging business at risk from the word go.

3. INCREMENTAL APPROACH

Paucity of key in-house expertise & resources, especially funds, forces design to be undertaken in an incremental manner, stretching across months at times. Design implementation also takes place at a slow pace so it is difficult to see the full picture or measure the impact of design. A healthcare start up, setting up new format of hospitals launched the service care product with just the new brand identity, However, the hospital experience that would resonate with the brand was placed on hold due to lack of funds. The result was apparent. Customers never experienced the distinction in the hospital value proposition and never understood as to why they should adopt this new hospital chain.

SynPhNe. Singapore based technology startup where design helped cutting edge tech become human through Industrial Design of Wearable stroke rehabilitation device focused on needs of patients.

ADVANTAGES with Startups

1. CONTAGIOUS ENERGY

Startups are a happy lot. Usual work culture is hands-on and people come across eager to learn, share and help. It is great to work with synergies of such teams and be part of an exciting journey. The results reflect on the design output. Client meetings are less of drudgery, are participative and consequently more productive.

2. WILLING EXPLORERS

This is one place where Startups score. They are willing to play along as you explore, experiment & test. There is negligible blame game, no departmental silos or ‘mother of all’ presentation to the King of the corporate. Results are quick and decisions are usually part of a co-creative play. Funds are the only constraint but then frugal approach and ‘jugaad’ prototypes are more than welcome. This approach works wonders for the confidence of the design team.

3. CREATIVE SATISFACTION

Many startups are working in the healthcare, social impact, agri-tech and energy space. Just the sense of what your work will potentially achieve can layer the designer in you with goose bumps. Each startup is a new challenge, whether it is B2B or B2C, it gives a sense of new purpose and when design helps enable such opportunities, the result is very satisfying. Design as core to startups is understood by the fact that many new enterprises have designers as co founders. Designers in India will have to quickly adapt to this new scenario and draw out a process to work with the Startup eco system. This culture is here to stay.

Plezmo. IOT based education platform that helps you learn program logic while you have smart fun. Pic by Plezmo

Plezmo. IOT based education platform that helps you learn program logic while kids have smart fun. Pic by Plezmo

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Entrapped!

Entrapped!

Glimpse of the ugly side of Design assignments professionals need to be wary of, while they quench their quest for the best.

By ASHISH DESHPANDE

Mac: What's the job? 

Gin: Like the wise man said: first we try then we trust.

Catherine Zeta-Jones (Gin) in 1999 American film, Entrapment, lures Sean Connery (Mac) into a high profile robbery, building a mysterious appeal to the “Job”. Now, Designers are not con artists, but as a professional species, they do get lured now and then into assignments that seemingly appear exciting, but the full picture is never to be seen or shown.

One of the definitions about fresh Design is creating the “new” and for design professionals this is always an exciting proposition. As professionals itching to contribute with better design, we are always looking for challenges. While seeking opportunities to design is a fundamental trait of a good design professional, there are few situations that one must be on the look out to avoid.

Carpetbaggers

“We would like a full presentation,” said the corporate manager on the phone call, “Please submit your understanding, strategy & design creative. Our MD will personally select the Design agency. We have called 7 firms to present & pitch”.

Brand & Product managers do have a need to evaluate design firms, choose the best their business aligns with and it is their right to do so. However, it is difficult to understand full scope presentations that are not paid pitches. In their bid to garner projects many design firms fall prey to such requests.

The biggest resource in possession of a design team is “consulting time”. By participating in unpaid work, a design team takes huge risk with its most precious resource, “Time”. Beyond bleeding the firm of its earnable time, such risks end up providing opportunist clients with a bag full of free approach options and most importantly encourages a culture of free work, lowers respect for effort & intellectual property rights.    

Comatose Client

Any designer or Design team’s worth is the projects they have managed to successfully complete. Key to such successful execution of a design project is the quality of decision making from stakeholders.

Family feuds, multiple project ownerships, inter-department rivalry, not involving other teams, changing roles or business focus, financial woes and such other conditions can stall decision making at crucial junctions and simply hang seemingly good projects.

Though design effort may get compensated financially in such conditions, there is low satisfaction with design teams and usually it is a wasted design effort. Stalled projects disturb team schedules, lower morale and usher a general disinterest as time flies along. Since such projects see partial execution, there is little learning and takes a toll on meaningful design experience that one may have gained.  In the long run, such projects start bleeding finances.

It pays to evaluate & understand the decision maker while signing up for a project. How strong is the involvement of the decision maker? Which teams will contribute to the success of the project? What is the level of support the design team can expect? Are there any possible party poopers to be expected along the way? What is the level of control on the project to see the project through?  Commitment to time, budgets, approvals, business vision of the project itself needs to be evaluated right before the start. It is Ok for the designer to ask a few questions and spell out any emerging gaps or concerns.

Startup Hiccups

Last few years has seen a proliferation of startups. Most of the startups are design aware, are open to new ways of doing business and looking to differentiate. Designers do find startups as exciting opportunities to work and help them differentiate. Energy of a startup is contagious and working with smaller teams is always engaging & fun.

However, startups do display a few shortcomings especially with funds, resources and limitation of network. Major investments into a project are expected during product execution, launch & promotions. This is one area where most startups stutter to a stall, drying up reserves and most conceptual projects experience prolonged suspension periods. For young designers this is a moment of frustration & disillusionment and for an experienced team it is a loss of productive time & opportunity.

Any professional will tell that time is precious. Time adds to our learning as well as earning. When projects make a designer lose both, time & money, one hopes that the experience gained on the project was worth its while. When projects don’t see light of the day, when success does not surface at business level, in markets and with the user, experience remains on paper.

“It is your job to deliver the project”. This is a favorite punch line of most business managers or CEOs to design teams. It is equally important for designers & design teams to question the stakeholders if they have the wherewithal to support the project from concept to market. Any ambiguous answer to this question must raise a red flag.

As someone said that we must learn to choose our battles that we want to fight, those that are worthy for dying. Similarly, a designer must carefully choose the projects she should be betting design skill & time. And there will be times when on a time trap project, as designers, we must learn to say, thank you, but NO!

ASHISH DESHPANDE is an Industrial Designer, Co-founder & Director at Elephant. An alumnus of National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, he is a keen Design Thinker, a member of The Design Alliance Asia & Jury for India Design Mark. He has worked on several design programs, notably, Titan Eye+, Ceat Tyres, Axis Bank, ICICI Bank, Symphony, Paperboat and works on medical & healthcare devices amongst others. Recently, Ashish spoke on Design with Context: Design for Real Needs, at the International Design Congress in Gwangju, Korea and is the Product Design Jury, Cannes Lions 2017.

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Start Up & Design Thinking

Select START UP teams of The Intel & DST – Innovate for Digital India Challenge 2.0 underwent #designthinking workshop Elephant Design Learning Centre yesterday. 

As a mentor adviser Ashish Deshpande spoke to top teams at #T_Hub earlier this month. 

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Lean Check - Elephant & a Start up

Hospital-acquired infections result in over 100,000 patient deaths every year* LeanCheck is India’s first system with a mission to reduce hospital-acquired infections significantly through a holistic approach. 

Elephant is happy to support this start up. 

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FINGER LIX - Ready & Accessible

Highlighting food that is ready & accessible 

Using design, adding enriching experience and communicating the delight. Check out our latest intervention with finger licking food Start Up !

yes. we are excited to work with start-ups. especially if they happen to be a crack team of marketing consultants we enjoy working with! 

Here's to every success... from Team Elephant to Team FINGER LIX!

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Nuts anyone?

Story, naming, packaging & visual assets for a start-up. 

Can't wait to bite into it?      Don't wait.       BiteASAP.

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Innovation for the road

Innovation for the road: how design works with new business & technology

Roadside auto repair is a huge unorganized business in India. How do innovative business modeling, technology and design create radical impact?

By Partho Guha, Director, Elephant

Roadside auto repair shops are mostly run by small entrepreneur mechanics, located in every nook and corner of Indian roads. They tend to serve neighbourhood car & two wheeler owners for simple and quick repair jobs. With the advance of auto industry these small-scale entrepreneurs are constantly redefining themselves and finding their unique proposition. Overall there are a huge number of road size auto repair businesses facing tremendous challenge in staying relevant in today’s market.

Repair Mechanic business is neighbourhood oriented. They are small scale operations where the owner usually is the chief mechanic playing multiple roles like procurement of parts from market, accounts, trainer, liaison and such. 

Autoji, is a young start up with a vision to create a differentiated business by making these auto repair shops to reinvent and be relevant. Taking up the role of being their support in re education, in-time doorstep supply and marketing their services. It is a technology based, scalable model to upgrade this demanding business.

Elephant worked on a Design led process to create “Autoji” along with R Sriram of Next Practice Retail & the AMG team. The team lent a language to the value proposition, brand, communication framework and design of retail space & expressions.

The process began with a deeper understanding of the auto repair shop and eco system. The team spoke with several repair shop owners, workers, fleet repair  workshop owners, existing retail to look at gaps in the needs, gaps & aspirations.

The final solution was a combination of tongue in cheek, street smart identity that lent respect to the service and was bold enough to be looked upon as a reliable service & supply partner, enlarged toll free connect, an application, a delivery van and an efficient supply space.

Trust was build through a series of icon-based communication. Many repairmen have low education or are used to local language & scripts. Using strong sense of visual icons and local script helped connect with the main customer base.

It is important that the language that is used and facilities for service connect with the key user segment.

The retail proposition was kept simple and functional with a emphasis on organized appeal, appropriateness and lower cost proposition. Autoji is a good example for how design can be an enabler for the business and is not a cost heavy investment.

“Design is not always about fancy store fit-outs, flashy neon lights & marbled floors. Design is about creating a user aligned business proposition, its is about new, relevant and differentiated service offering that uses technology as a enabling platform. Core focus remains the user.”

Elephant is India’s Best Design Practice (ET-Brand Equity 2012-2014 ranking) with a multi-disciplinary experience of 27+ years having presence in India & Singapore and has been transforming brands, organizations & businesses using Design led Innovation.

PARTHO GUHA is a Visual Communication Designer, Co-founder & Director at Elephant. An alumnus of National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, he regularly conducts workshops on design thinking & strategy. Partho is a passionate painter and divides his time between design process application, design led business strategy & roadmap and innovation.

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