OVERVIEW

Product Design for an Original Tote Bag representing a gift shop's brand, available for sale both In-store in Vancouver and Online in Japan

During the Product Design project at Gifts and Things in Vancouver, Canada, I designed and illustrated the shop’s original tote bag, representing the brand. This project highlighted my strong illustration skills, flexible style, and concept ideation abilities. I contributed from initial sketches to final digital art.

ROLE

Product Designer, Illustrator

CLIENT

Gifts and Things

DURATION

15 hours

TOOLS

Pen and Paper, Adobe Illustration

Outcomes

Achieved sales of 82% of the tote bag stock within 3.5 months

How did this project start?

It all started with my chalkboard art, which I have been creating for the shop's advertisements since I began working there. As I continued to craft the chalkboard art each month, recognition from customers and passersby grew, eventually catching the owner's eye. One day, he asked if I would be willing to design a tote bag representing the gift shop brand to be sold both in Canada and Japan. I accepted the offer immediately.

Some Pieces of My Chalkboard Art

View My Artwork

The Owner's Requests

Imagining the Users

First of all, I created user personas based on my research that represent the potential customers who are going to buy the tote bag in-store in Canada and online in Japan.

Inspirations

I browsed Pinterest and collected inspiration featuring light pen illustrations with no colours, focusing on spring-related themes.

Pen and Paper I Used

First Draft

With pen and paper, I brainstormed and drafted the spring-related illustrations. Imagining the spring-themed items and the products sold in the gift shop, I tried to capture the brand identity of the gift shop with the illustrations.

First Draft

Spring Related Animals

Dog and Cat

Flowres and Plants

Ecology

Gifts and Things

Vancouver/Canada

Rainbow, Easter Bunny Chocolate, and Hanging Laundry

Feedback and Final Draft

I submitted my final draft to the owner, and he liked the illustrations overall. However, he wanted to change the theme of the tote bag from spring to something that can be used year-round and appeal to both locals and tourists. He asked me to add 'Vancouver or Canada-related' illustrations, so I included the Steam Clock and coffee to represent Vancouver/Canada and removed the rainbow, Easter bunny chocolate, and hanging laundry.

Final Product for Sale

The tote bag is for sale both in-store in Gastown, Vancouver, and online in Japan. The online site is temporary and is featured in one of the most popular fashion magazines in Japan!

Learnings

Throughout the project, I learned how to transform the client's vague requests into a concrete product design and visualize the brand identity through illustrations. I also learned to adapt to changes that occurred during the project. It was a great opportunity for me to design a product from scratch that is now actually for sale. I look forward to more opportunities to design products in the future.