Putting Consumers and the Planet at the Forefront of the Design Process
Bags are the unsung heroes of everyday life—solving our transport needs for the most mundane tasks. Yet the waste of single-use bags has caused devastating effects to our planet. KeepCool has built a global business seeking to change consumer’s bag behaviors— one shopping trip at a time.
Since 2014, Akin has been KeepCool’s product and innovation partner putting consumers and the planet at the forefront of the design process.
Developing Washable Paper for Mass Retail
Akin’s strategic business proposal for the use of washable paper in mass retail led to the research and development of Super Natural Paper — a sustainable, durable, and 100% vegan material. Akin continued with leading the design immersion with our collective team to better understand the opportunities of this material for product development.
Through rapid prototyping within various use case scenarios, the team pushed the limits of the material while uncovering opportunities in sizes, shapes, and detailing.
This work provided the necessary directional content for future bag development and “Out of the Woods”, a new sustainable and environmentally considered bag brand by KeepCool.
Out of the Woods
The ‘Out of The Woods’ brand was born from Super Natural Paper, the washable, 100% vegan material. Akin designs a yearly product line from bags to lunch totes and wine cozies for the grocery category with Super Natural Paper.
To provide great design at affordable prices, each detail is scrutinized and refined resulting in products that uphold the KeepCool ethos in providing bags that are both functional and appealing. Within tough cost constraints, the team has successfully produced these products lines with no product costing over $15.
The Out Of The Woods brand has become an instant success with distribution in Whole Foods, Target, and Google stores.
Click’n’Stay
The Click ‘n’ Stay mechanism was born from Akin’s Human-centered design process developing empathy for users through in-context immersion.
Working as baggers at Whole Foods through our Akin network, our team saw the need to keep bags open for easier packing and unpacking, reducing time and frustration for both baggers and consumers.
This single handed function on each side of these soft bags is made of low cost, poly-propolene and provides an audible click when activated. Click ‘n’ Stay is currently being introduced to the market, with 300,000 Click n’ Stay bags sold for Fall 2019.
Video by KeepCool / www.keepcoolbags.com
Akin + KeepCool
Business Strategy | Research | Product Design | R+D Support | Mechanical Engineering