Chuckit!
Package designer, product designer, web designer and photographer are just a few titles I had in this small company leading the fetch industry.
Chuckit!
Package designer, product designer, web designer and photographer are just a few titles I had in this small company leading the fetch industry.
Chuckit! Overview
I spent six years with this small company, a leader in the fetch industry, developing my unicorn status as wearer of all of the hats. My UX career began with a unique user—dogs. The creative freedom and control I was given, along with the opportunity to learn new skills, made it a great place to work. My efforts in reshaping the brand were so successful that Chuckit! was acquired by Petmate in Arlington Texas. I was brought on as Visual Communications Manager with Petmate to help with the merging of the two companies. I was flown to Texas bi-weekly for four months before choosing not to move there permanently.
Things learned: product photography, rapid prototyping of 3D objects, sewing, carpentry, that dogs can destroy anything it’s just a matter of when. Oh, and I hold the patent for “ball.” (Get in touch to find out the ridiculous story behind this little gem.)
Package Design
I created a visual formula for all products to let the consumer know which products are intended for small, medium or large fetch enthusiasts. Where applicable, the formula also indicates which products are compatible with the iconic Chuckit! ball launcher of that same size.
Icon development
A challenge I had to solve was how to convey to the customer what items were size-appropriate for their pet, what the function of each product was, and indicate any other toys that were compatible with the item. With limited package real estate, iconography was the solution.
Iconography
I developed an icon set which accomplished this multi-pronged task. The visual space saved enabled me to meet the multilingual Canadian labeling requirements with a clean, uncluttered package.
Chuckit! Product
I contributed to conceptualization and rapid prototyping of some great pet products.
Chuckit! Product
I contributed to conceptualization and rapid prototyping of some great pet products.
PRODUCT Design
In a small company there is a lot of opportunity to wear a few different hats and pick up a new skills. I was given the chance to help the product development team with product conceptualization and rapid prototyping which went hand in hand with the development of very unique structural package design.
I am a co-inventor on 7 unique patents for this award winning product development team.
the concept
We wanted to solve for tennis balls 'lost at sea' with high visibility self-righting toys that stand higher above the water line and were Chuckit! ball launcher compatible.
realized
The result of many rounds of prototyping produced this highly durable, very functional, wildly successful toy comprised of natural rubber, ballistic nylon and EVA foam.