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REIMAGINING CAFE EXPERIENCE
Area of opportunity:
How might we reimagine the Sam’s Club Café experience?
Goal:
Design a cafe experience to suit your every occasion.
Brief:
To work with industry giants, Coca-Cola and their partner Sam's Club, was an opportunity of a lifetime for me. Through SCADPro, a multidisciplinary group of 24 students from 15 majors, and 13 countries were assembled to create a design studio.
We were brief with one challenge in mind: Re-imagine Sam's Cafe experience in only 10 Weeks.
RESEARCH & INSIGHTS
iNTELLIGENCE GATHERING
SERVICE BLUEPRINT
RESEARCH INSIGHTS
Branding opportunity: presentation and signage.
Lack of accommodations and incentives for breadth of occassions.
Outdated in-store technology and limited mobile app experience.
Wayfinding opportunity: Streamline traffic flow and improve circulation.
Additional insights:
Inefficient order process with unmanaged and extended wait times
Under-maintained equipment with inadequate placement
The first plan of action was to find areas of opportunity when redesigning the Sam's Club Cafe experience. We gathered primary and secondary research, by experiencing the current cafe state and customer reviews. We found several pain points to improve, from service, technology (lack of...), and Aesthetic ambiance to Chaotic Traffic flows. With plenty of research material to work with the team dove into drafting several methods to tackle these challenges.
STRUCTURAL DESIGN LEAD & COMMUNITY LIASON
my role
As the Structural Design lead, I was in charge of overseeing the success and management of the Structural Design team, composed of 8 designers, from interior design, UX design, and industrial design.
Along with the team, we tackled one of the most important elements to the success of our collaboration with Coca-Cola, the reimagining the interior space of Sam's Cafe, and all that's within the space. From wayfinding, structure layout, aesthetics, furniture, materials and the experience.
I was able to pave a clear direction for the team to generate ideas, develop them and see it all the way through.
AETHETIC STLYE AND LAYOUT
INTERIOR DESIGN
Being in charge of the interior space was a new experience for me, none the less working with our in-house interior designers made the ideation and execution of our final output a fun challenge thatI wish I would take more often.
We started with finding a style and aesthetic the client wanted to stick to. I came up with 3 options for the team:
Industrial Latitude (Industrial Style)
Zen Garden (Minimalist & Greenery Style)
Cola Theme (Coca Cola Style)
Ultimately, we settled with Industrial Latitude, after consulting with the client and to better fit the current aesthetics of the Sam's Club Warehouse.
The team was also able to offer 8 different types of layouts to accommodate any occasion or space. From an Extra Large floorplan all the way to a Micro floorplan, with consideration of differently shaped plans.
FLOORPLAN LAYOUTS
INDUSTRIAL LATITUDE
ZEN GARDEN
COLA THEME
MASTERPLAN RENDER
INTERIOR COMPONENTS
industrial design
As an industrial designer, I created several furniture and component pieces that our interior designers would work with from sketches to physical prototypes. However, we did not only consider the aesthetic of these interior components but also how customers would interact with these pieces. Based on our research, a pain point for customers was the traffic flow, due to carts being in the way of people who wanted to get through or eat at the cafe.
MAIN INTERIOR COMPONENTS
Bricka Service Tray
Tabla Dining Bench
Spring Stool
Cart Table
With the design opportunities presented, I designed four main components. Each design addresses a pain point listed by current Sam's Club customers and matches the overall Industrial style, ultimately improving the cafe experience.
service tray
bricka
DESCRIPTION
The Bricka Service Tray sprung from our observation of Sam's Club cafe customers struggling to carry their meals (pizza, drinks, hotdogs). We wanted to propose the next evolution of the "shop-while-you-eat" experience. The service tray not only allows you to carry your meal but also have the option to attach it to your cart.
The design allows the customer to hold their meal and drink with ease. Designed to be manufactured using injection molding. There are two ways of attachment, the first being hook-on. This is where the hooks attach to the metal rails, and the second is clip-on. Where the tray can be laid on top of the expandable basket of the shopping cart.
INCONTEXT RENDERS
TECHPACK
I then took the idea from a 2D sketch to a 3D form, considering a design that is accessible yet meets all standard requirements for a table. I modeled and drafted the cart table in a software called Rhino3D. This is the same blueprint used for the physical prototype.
Attachment Style 1
Attachment Style 2
PROTOTYPE
In total, I prototyped 3 copies of Bricka for our clients to interact with. I started with 3D Printing the model and testing it on the cart to find the perfect fit and proportion. Once I did I proceeded to finish it to a high fidelity prototype to show during our final presentation.
spring stool
DESCRIPTION
The Spring Stool is a fun concept of a traditional stool. Combining the bounce action from springs, this design introduces interactivity in the cafe experience. Our research found customers, especially those with children get bored while waiting for their order. Thus while idle, customers can now bounce on their stools and act like a fidget action.
TABLA bENCH
DESCRIPTION
The Tabla Bench is meant to be a simple compliment to our cart table, that is ADA-friendly, while still maintaining the industrial aesthetic we've chosen. The dining bench can comfortably seat up to 3 customers max.
Cart Table
& Tabla Bench
DESCRIPTION
The Cart Table and Tabla Bench are our premier designs. The table is the first of its kind reimagining what the cafe experience in a wholesale store would be like. One of our goals was to eliminate the inefficiency of traffic flow and boost the organization of the cafe space. The cart table design directly addresses said design opportunity. Customers can now place their carts in a secure and organized space, enjoying their meal, while keeping the cafe's traffic flow smooth, as there are no stray carts blocking people's way.
While observing Sam's Club cafe, we immediately noticed the immense amount of carts scattered through the space, often blocking other customers' paths. We ideated several solutions and ultimately decided on a concept sketch I proposed.
I then took the idea from a 2D sketch to a 3D form, considering a design that is accessible yet meets all standard requirements for a table. I modeled and drafted the cart table in a software called Rhino3D. This is the same blueprint used for the physical prototype.
IN-CONTEXT RENDERS
Cart Table & Tabla Bench in-context
Cart Table & Tabla Bench in-context
PROTOTYPE
Our star of the show was the Cart table and the Tabla Bench, thus we wanted to prototype it in full scale. With the help of my teammates, we were able to manufacture a 1:1 scale of the cart table & bench, where users can truly interact with the set and use it for its intended purpose. All done within a week and a half. Seeing it in real life also opened up the conversation on where we can improve the design for its next iteration with Coca-Cola.
The table was made out of MDF board, which we made to look like steel, we used fasteners and joints to assemble the parts. Finishing with primer and dark blue paint to match the color aesthetic of our cafe "Sam's Corner".
