For the Account School of Planning

By Kay To

1. Defining the RFP

2. What is the quintessential of cool?

3. The answer to the RFP and how it can be brought to life

If a constant stream of designer collaborations is not enough to make H&M cool, what can a one-off basketball shoes association do?

And besides, these are not your influencers.

– Shuana M, San Francisco Yelp Elite Squad 2011, 2012

– Victoria, fashion blogger, 22 year old, works in a cake shop, UK

-’The petite one whose last name is Wu’, student, China

And they love the fact that H&M are able to translate catwalk trends to wearable street wear at affordable prices!

Cheap Monday – Reebok Collaboration

Higher price point due to human-centered design

Newcomer against incumbent IBM

Higher price point due to human-centered design

Newcomer against incumbent IBM

Humanistic

The challenger who stands for you, the individual

The underdog challenger appealed to the hippie culture (1984 ad)

Devices’ intuitive design wowed. Made great status symbols.

Seen as uncool because of mass availability

Seen as uncool because it is cheap

Seen as uncool because of mass availability

Seen as uncool because it is cheap

Is democratic by providing style for all

It stands for the individual by helping them dress forward

With the internet providing access to information free for all, society is moving into a ‘all are equal’ culture even quicker than before.

People feel that they are not stop from their fullest potential in career, their relationships because of class, nationality, wealth, colour, gender etc

The founders and therefore the culture of the company felt centered around the hippie culture They were the first mover in electronic products centered around an intuitive user interface The priority of the product was user design centered and the designers & engineers worked to realise that vision

The founders and consequent CEOs are Scandinavian. Its culture is perceived as one of equal rights. They were the first mover (alongside with Zara) who made style affordable to the masses

The times are shifting. The world is on the cusp of change. Opportunities that have been once barred from us because of our class. Our nationality. Our colour. Our gender. Are becoming closer for us to lay hold of. So close for our reach. But wars are won in that blink of the first impression, so it’s time for us to play dirty. Because that’s just only fair. You’re not going to know what hit you. it’s time for us to kick it one notch up. Take ourselves out on the streets and declare.

1. When entering a site, you hear a sudden loud sound of glass breaking.

2. You look.

3. An internet banner of a black and white group portrait of similarly dressed business has cracks.

4. You mouse over it (or on the phone, you touch it)

5. The picture shatters with the mouse to reveal a group of sharply dressed men and women in the latest fashion (B&W)

6. Drives to H&M website after the picture is revealed

• FaceHunter (Yvan Rodic) to do a mini mockumentary series interviewing people in various key markets (LATAM, China, U.S, Europe) on preparing for a street demonstration for free and equal rights for all.

• To be done in H&M stores as if it were their ‘secret bases’

• To be set up by Yvan Rodic’s web series

• Stylishly dressed people of different shapes and sizes demonstrating against invisible limits (class, gender, looks, etc) on the street

• Dependent on licensing from authorities or may use digital to arrange for flash mobs.

1. Has H&M explored having a design focused person to sit as one of the key decision makers in H&M (similar to the capacity of Amancio Ortega)?

2. Has H&M explored breaking the ‘H&M’ brand down to different concepts similar to Inditex’s Zara, Pull & Bear etc?

3. Has H&M explored the idea of original product design?

4. What is H&M mission and business goal ten years later?

5. How much of its business is H&M considering doing online?

Judges for taking the time to read and critique

Allanjit Singh, Sonal Narain and Tulika for your invaluable guidance & input

And all my colleagues at Iris Nation who helped one way or the other!