1881+ American Red Cross NY
Project: Sponsored Graduate Industrial Design Studio class — Core stakeholder interviews with tools, activity field participation, data analysis (Ten students: 18 weeks), Problem identification by In-depth stakeholder relationship analysis, strategy and design development (Individual: 10 weeks)
Client: American Red Cross Greater New York Chapter (Collaboration with ARC Greater Los Angeles Chapter)
Assignment; Help the American Red Cross sustain itself and implement changes to benefit itself and its clients in the future.
Recognition: IDEA Silver (Jul. 2010): Chosen by the ARC NY and elevated to the national level.
What is 1881+?
The American Red Cross was established in Washington, D.C. on May 21, 1881 by Clara Barton. 1881+, a line of functional apparel and lifestyle consumer goods created to revitalize the brand image of the American Red Cross with the message of "ACTIVE CARING", celebrates the moment of the organization's foundation. 1881+ helps the ARC to guide the public toward practicing a mindset of preparedness in their daily lives. This allows people to be in control of their lives and/or surroundings and understand the message of the ARC.
Challenges
Firstly, ARC's identity is merely nominal because ARC has lost the exclusive possession of its logo. Secondly, ARC relies heavily on media coverage of their activities limited to catastrophic disasters, because that is the main source of the revenue (donations); however, not all events receive media attention. The primary recipients of ARC services are disaster victims with weak purchasing power and low impact on ARC's exposure. Thirdly, unlike the unique and top of the line educational content ARC provides for its safety and preparedness classes, ARC carries private-label catalogue products which lack any brand exclusivity. Finally, ARC's existing preparedness (emergency) kit is intended for catastrophic events that most of the public thinks it will never happen to them.
Message: Preparedness
This new branding strategy for the American Red Cross allows them to build a new mythology, eventually becoming the symbol of “Active Caring” and “Independence” through trusted quality apparel and life-style goods. 1881+ products help consumers achieve a sense of readiness in their everyday lives and lowers their fear of the unknown.
The ARC will own the intellectual property and copyrights, enabling them to have control over a consistent line of products and cultivate a group of exclusive manufacturing and distribution partners who can eventually co-brand products with the ARC.