Emanate Studio
The Brief
For DMBA Experience Studio, design and build a pop-up retail space that re-examines the tattoo shopping experience from start to finish.
The Outcome
Dean’s Spotlight selection, top marks throughout the semester, over 40 completed tests of final experience.
The Team
Amira Selim, Ken Muha, Maria Solis, Ivana Colendich, and Paul Mendoza, Design Strategists
My Roles
Communication Design, Brand Strategy, Organizational Design, Conversational Design, Design Research
01 :: Draft the Agreement
Finding our link to ink.
For Experience Studio, a signature course in CCA's MBA in Design Strategy program, I felt like I won the jackpot. Amira, Ken, Maria, and Ivana are all tremendous talents, and we came together beautifully with the perfect balance of creative powers and collaborative strengths.
We aligned quickly on tattoos as the focus for our pop-up retail experience. We knew we could bring a fresh take to the tattoo industry and its standard operating practices.
Our team charter allowed us to distribute the work equitably throughout the semester, and to address conflicts and divergence from a place of trust and respect.
We also found great value in branding our team early on as LITHIC, collaborating on a look and feel that would guide our direction as excavators and curators throughout our design process.
02 :: Discover the Opportunity
Leave no stone unturned.
While three of our five team members have tattoo experience, we challenged our biases by surveying 15 people about their tattoo history: the artwork they chose, the body parts they inhabit, and the stories behind them all.
We also conducted field research at tattoo parlors in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Orange County, which we augmented with secondary readings, my personal favorite being The Social Semiotics of Tattoo: Skin and Self.
Finally, we pushed the boundaries a bit further by looking into hospitality and beauty industries that were not immediately tattoo-adjacent: a stay at a themed luxury hotel, makeup and skin care websites, and dangerously high levels of Instagram.
03 :: Define the Strategy
Run it like a city playground.
After spending much time in a tattooed state of mind, a recurring theme arose: the dignity of bodies being visible in public space. When environments are just as impactful as the artwork itself, how do tattoos amplify and diminish dignity in constructed spaces?
Our organizational strategy and product approach leaned into this idea of spatial dignity, of fleeting moments tied to healing and health, and to the collaboration challenges we faced as a distributed team.
Much like our audiences, the members of LITHIC needed various ways to play, and to rest. We were inspired by Restorative Ground and other modern urban playgrounds to approach our teamwork with a focus on healthy development.
Futhermore, we leaned heavily into the adjacencies between tattoo care, skin care, and health care. Tattoo artists carefully explain the importance of after-care at the end of the journey. We saw an opportunity to advance the language of care at the very beginning.
04 :: Develop the Prototypes
Take me to the (micro) pilot.
To excavate our testable models, we storyboarded multiple experience journeys based on Kaospilot's 5E Experience Model, which we expanded into two scale models that represented the most extreme contrasts in our approach.
We applied our learnings from the model presentations to the construction of a “micropilot” using found objects to simulate final construction and spatial flow.
We tested two different models for onboarding and artwork selection: an active personal consultation and a passive digital kiosk. Those insights powered the development of the visual look and feel and the verbal language surrounding the product itself.
Finally, we piloted a tangible card-assisted conversational flow that would help customers make an informed art style decision quickly while reframing their experience as a mindful journey through nature and personal memory.
05 :: Deliver the Results
Breathe in, breathe art.
Our goal for the final was to create a highly circulatory space: filled with a controlled breath, a heartened center, a steady pulse, and a nourishing flow.
To increase our customer capacity, we built a simple registration survey and stationed two identical engagement areas on either side of our structure.
We softened the industrial textures of our space with flora, felt, and a subtle sound bath, and we highlighted the minerality of our brand by wearing jumpsuits that complemented our primary colors.
And our final printed cards, posters, “After-Glow” takeaway kit, single-page website, and Instagram profile unified our visual touchpoints from enticement to extension.
06 :: Debrief the Milestones
Shining our inner light.
Emanate Studio left quite a mark on the CCA community. At the end of the year, we were one of 30 works selected for the Deans’ Spotlight, a campus-wide honor.
We exceeded our attendance goals, guiding over 30 attendees through our tattoo therapy experience. The high foot traffic gave us valuable insights, like the desire to select artwork in platonic pairs while still preferring the actual tattoo application to be a solo experience.
For future development, I’d personally like to see more representation for melanated skin. The challenges in color matching and the shift in cultural context would likely prove beneficial to our understanding of our product.
Ultimately, LITHIC held true to its charter, its vision, and its commitment to excellence. We found new ways to thrive in a hybrid workspace, to work and play with grace, good humor, and dignity. Very honored to be a part of this team.
