Slowth: The New "Growth"
Decoding a Package
Too often, a firm falls victim to the marketing mind-trap: thinking what
it’s selling are goods and services, when what’s actually being “sold” are the
signs and meanings of its brand. A product’s package, then, serves more than as
brand salesman - its words and visuals must reflect the times. This project was
about creating a mood board that separates a package’s promotional fluff from what could allude to deeper consumer narratives.
INDUSTRY
Marketing / Communications Consumer Goods / Lifestyle |
SKILLS
Trend Forecasting Consumer Analysis Mood Boarding Adobe Creative Suite |
The Apparel Market of Saudi Arabia
An Untapped and Growing Opportunity for US Firms
From a global comparative standpoint, both Saudi Arabia and the region it belongs to have undergone significant changes which have made them more attractive for international apparel companies than parts of the world. This is the accompanying presentation to an Executive Briefing report which seeks to persuade Saks Off Fifth to expand into Saudi Arabia. Supporting evidence stems from both current characteristics of the rapidly modernizing country, and the specifics of the company itself.
INDUSTRY
International Business Fashion / Retail |
SKILLS
Global Industry Analysis Consumer Analysis Country / Firm Study Strategy Execution Risk Management Powerpoint |
The Future of Wearable Fitness
From the earliest fitness trackers to Google's controversial Glass, the world of wearable technology has taken on a life of its own. But besides the talk, why don't we see everyone with a wearable, what's keeping these devices from going mainstream? This presentation seeks to answer such questions and concludes with a strategy for a potential client who has not yet dabbled in the phenomenon. My "client": Soul Cycle. My recommendations: "Make it affordable. Make it seamless. Ask for permission."
INDUSTRY
Technology Fitness |
SKILLS
Trend Forecasting Consumer Analysis Strategy Execution Powerpoint |
UNIQLO
The Opportunities in Brazil
When renowned global research agency Millward Brown compiled its BRANDZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands 2012 report, the company summarized why many of today’s businesses either hoping to expand their international reach or join the global battleground for consumers are eyeing Brazil as a promising venture: “Expanding middle class drives brand growth.” The causes of this phenomenon certainly include economic ones – such as improving family fortunes, a rise in disposable income, and a growing economy to meet all the new demand - but just as important are mindset shifts, in terms of how Brazilians see themselves relative to each other, and to the rest of the world. Though "“everyone wants to dance with the new [Brazilian] middle class", such dramatic changes have transformed how businesses should go about doing so. For UNIQLO, a Japanese casual apparel brand who's already achieved great success in its home country and the United States, the numerous opportunities in Brazil can't be ignored, but they can't be tapped into by simply replicating previous campaigns. In four write-ups and a presentation, I build and propose an international promotional strategy for the fast fashion retailer to expand into BRIC nation.
INDUSTRY
Marketing / Communications Fashion / Retail Arts / Culture |
SKILLS
Country / Firm Study Consumer Analysis Strategy Execution Campaign Development Powerpoint |
CONTEXT
Parsons the New School for Design International Marketing & Promotions - Semester Project - Fall 2012 |
Are brands overgeneralizing consumers in emerging markets?
Styleta Presents:
Fashion's Night Out
Styleta is a student-run, fashion non-profit which collects and sells donated designer clothing, with proceeds given to its charity partners. In the fall of 2010, it made the bold decision to add a university lacking any strong interest in style into its network. As the first Creative Director of the organization's Washington University in St. Louis chapter, I was in charge of overseeing all promotional efforts.
INDUSTRY
Marketing / Communications Fashion / Retail Non-profit |
SKILLS
Campaign Development Event Planning Teamwork Recruiting Project Management |
Game of Thrones Season 2
Marketing Plan
Before being accepted as an intern at The Tobe Report, I was asked to demonstrate how I use trend analyses to develop strategic recommendations for clients. The prompt: "Setting your own scenario / premise for a film or television show's situation (i.e. if it is a new release or the premiere of a new season), develop a promotional strategy for the marketing department, which wants to engage current audience members and/or reach a new demographic market. What kind of program can they introduce to capture a larger portion of the masses? What tools can they utilize (i.e. social media), and what types of collaborations can they experiment with (i.e. celebrity endorsements, product tie-ins)?" Chosen scenario: HBO's Game of Thrones, entering its second season.
INDUSTRY
Marketing / Communications Television |
SKILLS
Trend Forecasting Consumer Analysis Strategy Execution App Design Powerpoint |
YSL
Brand Overview
A new brand name, typeface, and logo. More fast fashion-mimicking
collections. Grungier ads starring rockers and style rebels. These are just a
few of the changes Hedi Slimane’s introduced to legendary fashion house Yves
Saint Laurent since his 2012 appointment as creative director. As controversial YSL’s hiring of Slimane may have been, it wasn’t surprising. The fashion industry has undergone significant change: brick-and-mortar’s debatable extinction; the reversal of the direction at which trends diffuse; the effects of an economy still reeling from downturn... Indeed, long-established brands cannot continue to rely on legacies and storied origins, as these very histories are what consumers craving newer, more affordable alternatives have rendered obsolete. But that doesn't mean their current execs should ignore the past - in fact, understanding it is essential to surviving into the future. So when a client who asked Pilot Projects LLC to help it learn everything about the YSL brand, three had to be made.
INDUSTRY
Management Fashion / Retail |
SKILLS
Research Consumer Analysis Country / Firm Study Powerpoint |
7 Things You Should Know About...
Cirque du Soleil
Especially when it comes to well-educated, working adults, finding the right form of entertainment is a big challenge. Unlike children, who are easily satisfied by empty thrills and humor, adults need excitement, complete sensual submersion, intellectual probing... etc., etc. Thus, by utilizing what is already in existence - that is, the circus and the theater - Cirque du Soleil has redefined the entertainment industry in an otherwise saturated market, by merging the two worlds together. In short, innovation. Adopting EDUCAUSE's "7 Things You Should Know...", this short essay explores why the company's business model is so revolutionary.
INDUSTRY
Management Entertainment |
SKILLS
Research Consumer Analysis Country / Firm Study Essay Writing |
Biomimicry: Innovation Inspired by Nature
The Potential Application of Beehives on Capsule Hotels
Though the concept of borrowing ideas from Mother Earth has been around for hundreds of years, it's only in the last few decades that it's gotten the attention of the business world. Indeed, since the 1997 publication of the popular book by Janine N. Benyus that coined it as "biomimicry", "innovation inspired by nature" is on everyone's minds - whether scientist, agriculturalist, product designer, urban planner... or corporate executive. And if you need some proof, just look up some recent business news stories. "Biomimicry: How Nature Can Streamline Your Business For Innovation" - Forbes investigated in April 2014. "The Evolution of Business: Creating 'Firms of the Future' Through Biomimicry" - an April 2013 article from CSRwire reads. "The Booming Business of Biomimicry" - Fast Company gave the numbers and even ran a Biomimicry Challenge. For this presentation, then, we were asked to summarize any chapter from Benyus's book, then relate its ideas to a separate but related research study of our choosing. The chapter: "How Will We Harness Energy?" The study: "Study of Beehive and its potential 'biomimicry' application on Capsule Hotels in Tokyo, Japan" by Despoina Fragkou and Dr. Vicki Stevenson.
INDUSTRY
Sustainable Design Architecture / Urban Planning |
SKILLS
Research Powerpoint |
CONTEXT
Parsons the New School for Design Economics & Ethics in Sustainable Design - Final Project - Fall 2013 |
Other Projects
Almost three years at Washington University in St. Louis; a brief semester in its Fashion Marketing AAS program before deciding to transfer to Parsons the New School for Design; summer classes at Binghampton University... my academic path certainly hasn't been traditional, but I've always coveted its unusualness. The best thing about experiencing the unique approaches different universities use for business education? Getting to dabble in all the specific fields of the discipline: financial and crisis management, merchandising, social media marketing, retailing... etc. etc. Please click on the project's image to read its full description and see it in its entirety.