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When Vlad Drguin founded his mid-century inspired toy car company, Candylab, in 2013, he had a Kickstarter page and a dream. His goal was to create wooden model cars inspired by hot rods and classic American car designs; toys that would be both durable enough for play and sleek enough for display. As it turns out, theres a major growing market for that kind of thingand Candylab just rebranded to capture it. Since its founding, Candylab has secured retail placement in stores like Londons Design Museum, MoMa, the Guggenheim, Barnes & Noble, and the cult favorite apparel brand Kith. Its also notched major brand collabs including with Saint Laurent, Zara Kids, Criterion Collection, The New York Times, and, most recently, Netflixs Stranger Things. [Photo: Courtesy of Candylab] In recent years, Candylab has expanded its product offerings into two categories: one is its original line of premium, heftier cars, designed with collectibility in mind, and the second is a new line of smaller, less expensive, more lightweight cars engineered for play. Candylabs toys naturally fit into an increasingly bifurcated toy industry that, over the past few years, has begun targeting two different audiences: kids who want to play with toys, and adults who want to collect them (and maybe play a bit, too). The companys issue, according to Johnny Selman, founder of the design agency Selman, was that Candylabs branding didnt draw a clear distinction between its core products, making it difficult for customers to understand its offerings. So, his team worked with Candylab to create a new logo, brand positioning, product names, and visual identity that streamline it for a future where toys are meant for every kind of customer. [Photo: Courtesy of Candylab] What’s a ‘kidult,’ anyway? Candylabs products are a prime example of items beloved by a niche that some might refer to as the kidult segment, or an emerging consumer base of adults who are investing in toys of their own. According to a 2024 Circana report, adults accounted for more toy sales than preschoolers, with 43% purchasing a toy for themselves in the previous year. Companies like Lego and Mattel have increasingly begun tapping into this trend with new, nostalgia-driven items specifically designed for an adult audience. John Paul Chirdon, a creative director at Selman, says Drguins goal has always been to make nice, design-forward toys for kidsand adults interest in the product naturally comes alongside that. As an adult, you dont really punch down to make something attractive for kids, you just make something really good for kids, Chirdon says. Selmans challenge, then, was to design a brand architecture that was both really awesome for kids and really premium for adults. [Photo: Courtesy of Candylab] Designing a new brand for Candylab When Selman began brainstorming a new brand identity for Candylab, the core problem quickly became clear. Because the company had been built piece-by-piece over time by a small team, it was overflowing with great retro imagery and branding concepts, but lacked a consistent overarching brand story. Across some of the packaging, Johnny says, his team found at least six different versions of the Candylab logo. [Photo: Courtesy of Candylab] Selman streamlined the broader branding using past iterations of the Candylab logowhich themselves pulled inspiration from chrome typography on vintage carsto create one retro-yet-legible wordmark that represents the company. From there, it also identified a core color palette for the brand and narrowed its font options to just one type family called Space Grotesk. This simplification process opened the door for Selman to address the fact that, online, customers had trouble distinguishing between the brands more kid-centric line of cars (then called Candycars) and its more premium, adult-focused large cars (then called Midcentury Americana). Online, that branding didn’t exist, Chirdon says. The Americana and Candycar lines weren’t visually distinguished from each other or the overarching Candylab brand, leaving consumers confused about the difference between all three. Ultimately, Chirdon adds, we were like, You’re one brandCandylab. Now let’s deal with just making all the products clear. Looking ahead to new kinds of cars To start, the team decided to fully rename the premium car line Mints, while the smaller cars are still called Candycars. Now, though, the two lines look entirely distinct on shelves and online. Mints are universally displayed against an white background, both in packaging and digitally, to keep a cleaner look. Meanwhile, Candycars are packaged and edited onto colorful backgrounds in hues like pastel blue, tangerine, and teal. Mints and Candycars also have their own dedicated logos, each inspired by different eras of car typography. What we tried to do was push that a little more whimsical for the Candycar line and then push it a little bit more classic grown-up with the Mints line, Johnny says. [Photo: Courtesy of Candylab] Candylabs new identity has already appeared online, and it will start rolling out on packaging as new cars debut over time. More importantly, Johnny and Chirdon say, this brand architecture means that Candylab can start introducing new product lines without confusing customerslike an accessory pack of toy roads called Roadworks and a fresh car design called Toons, both of which are part of Candylabs current fundraiser on Kickstarter. We helped them create the platform to keep going with clarity, Chirdon says.
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E-Commerce
Inc.com columnist Alison Green answers questions about workplace and management issueseverything from how to deal with a micromanaging boss to how to talk to someone on your team about body odor. Heres a roundup of answers to three questions from readers. 1. Ive fired my new employee before I recently took a new job in my same industry and city. In my new role, Ill have a team of eight reporting to me in various capacities and functions. During the interview process, I got a brief read-out on the team and a high-level talent assessment. Nothing stood out as an issue. On my first day, I met the team reporting to me. One of the people on the team is someone who worked for me before and whom I terminated for cause because of performance at my previous company. What do I communicate to my management team or HR about this situation? It feels weird to say nothing because ultimately this could be a management issueIm sure this employee doesnt feel great about the situation. On the other hand, I dont want to risk harming this persons reputation at this company if they are doing a good job so far. This person is pretty new here too, and my impression is they are either doing a better job in this role or management has not yet identified an issue with their performance. Green responds: Have you talked to the employee yet? Thats important because they are undoubtedly really uncomfortable, if not outright panicking. Ideally, youd tell them that youre happy to be working with them again, youve heard good things about the work theyve been doing (if thats true), and while you know your last time working together didnt go the way either of you wanted, this is a different situation and, as far youre concerned, both of you are starting fresh. I do think youre right that you need to mention it to your management team or HR. Its unfortunate, because this person is entitled to a fresh start without the firing following them to a different job, but its relevant not as a predictor of the persons work now, but because it could affect the dynamic between the two of you, and either of you could struggle not to interpret things through that old lens. You can keep it very briefI managed Jane at a previous company, and unfortunately the fit wasnt right and we ended up parting ways. Im very willing to start fresh with her and Im hopeful the role shes in could be a great match, but I wanted to flag the prior work relationship. Also, if its been a while since you worked together, stress that, too. 2. Why do people respond to emails with a phone call? Whats the etiquette on responding to people youve emailed who respond with a phone call? I understand there are times when a phone call is necessary. Ive been getting dozens of phone calls (after sending out a ton of emails on a certain work issue) and they all ask me to call them back. Im just frustrated because if I email someone, its because I dont want to talk on the phone. And the question is usually easily answered via email. Whats the best way to respond? Green responds: I get being annoyed, but its not always up to youand sometimes it makes sense. Sometimes people will call you back because they thinkoften rightlythat itll be faster. They might not be sure about the meaning of your email and they want to clarify before responding, and figure theyll just jump on the phone rather than going back and forth. Or their answer might take a long time to write out but be easier to deliver over the phone. Or they just prefer the phone, just as you prefer email. And not everyone feels they communicate as well in writing as they do out loud. For an email fan, this can be annoying. When you like email, it feels efficient and convenient and respectful of everyones time. Plus, sometimes its helpful to have a written record of what was discussed as a reference you can look back at later if needed. And if youre having an especially busy day or suspect a call will be 30 minutes when it should be five, it might be fine to let the call go to voicemail, and then email later with, Got your voicemail. Im in back-to-back meetings and will be hard to reach todayany chance email will work? Maybe it will, and theyll tell you if it wont. But save that for when you really need itbecause while you get to have your preferences, they get to have theirs, too. 3. Setting boundaries on requests for help from your significant others network I am engaged to a wonderful person. We both work in the same field, though for different organizations. We are working to create healthy boundaries between our personal and professional lives and it is important to both of us that we are able to pursue careers independently. My organization is bigger and engages in some grant-making activities. A coworker of my fiancés recently reached out to me for more information on how their organization could acquire funding. I directed her to publicly available resources, but she responded seeking a personal introduction to our grant officer. This made me uncomfortable; Im happy to connect anyone who asks to see public information, but it felt like she was leveraging my personal relationship to gain access. I know the importnce of networking and personal connections, but I have no professional relationship with this person and weve met only once in passing. My fiancé and I discussed the need for a policy on how to deal with these kinds of inquiries as we see this being a recurring issue as we move forward in our careers. I would love advice on how to navigate these kinds of requests. Green responds: The way you handled it sounds just fine. When she asked for an introduction to the grant officer, you could have said, Oh, we get such a high volume of interest in funding that we ask all grant applicants to follow the process listed on our website. And if she still pushed: Im sorry I cant help. Were really rigorous about asking everyone to use the process on our website so that everyone is treated the same. Thanks for understanding! In other words, not so different from how youd probably handle it if your fiancé werent in the picture. Explain what the person should do, and then reiterate that if necessary. Be warm and friendly, but hold firm on what you are and arent willing or able to do. My answer would be different if the person had been requesting something different. If she were asking for something like an informal chat about moving into your fieldas opposed to this kind of special treatmentId encourage you to consider that, like you presumably would consider other similar requests that came through a mutual contact. Want to submit a question of your own? Send it to alison@askamanager.org. Alison Green This article originally appeared on Fast Companys sister publication, Inc. Inc. is the voice of the American entrepreneur. We inspire, inform, and document the most fascinating people in business: the risk-takers, the innovators, and the ultra-driven go-getters that represent the most dynamic force in the American economy.
Category:
E-Commerce
Netflix’s decision to quietly remove the ability to cast content from its mobile apps to smart TVs and streaming devices has caused a bit of an uproar on social media. The complaints are the usual ones you see when a company removes a feature. Some blame greed. Some are upset their method of end-running subscription sharing has been shut down. Some just jump on the opportunity to complain about Netflix. But frequent travelers could have a legitimate grievance about the company’s decision to largely end casting. The change was enacted without warning and without fanfare in November, with some of the earliest complaints from users coming on Nov. 10. Netflix has since changed the help page on its Website to say it no longer supports casting shows from a mobile device to most TVs and TV-streaming devices.” It follows a 2019 decision by the company to remove support for Apple’s AirPlay feature. Netflix says the casting feature was rarely used by subscribers. But many business and other frequent travelers have come to depend on casting to watch Netflix on hotel TVs instead of their phone’s screen. The days of free HBO being a sufficient draw to attract travelers are long gone. Today’s hotel visitor wants to be able to connect to their streaming service of choice while they’re on the road. (Missing a screening of a movie you’ve seen before isn’t a big deal. Missing the new Stranger Things and risking spoilers for the rest of your trip can be.) Hotels, meanwhile, encourage guests to use streaming services, as it puts the cost burden of entertainment programming on the traveler, helping the chain cut expenses. There’s no universal way to watch streaming services in your hotel room. Some chains let you connect your laptop to your in-room TV, though you’ll need to remember to pack an extra HDMI cable to take advantage of this. Some offer apps directly on the television, letting you scan a QR code to verify the connection on your phone, then access your streaming service. Despite protections by those hotel chains (all login information is wiped at user checkout, something the hotels are contractually obligated to do by the streaming services), many people are still hesitant to link their personal accounts to a public television. That leaves casting. Many hotels prefer this option, says Richard Leonarz, director of product management for Hospitality Television at Samsung, as it takes the responsibility of clearing user credentials off of their shoulders. (Once the guest and their phone are out of range of the TV, the casting ends.) Casting is also a strong preference for visitors to Airbnb and Vrbo destinations, as owners of those facilities often don’t wipe the credentials of previous guests. International travelers also frequently prefer a casting option, as it lets them access services that might not be available in the U.S. or a built-in option on a hotel Smart TV. That said, casting isn’t a perfect solution for hotel visitors. It requires the proper software to be installed on the in-room TV (usually Chromecast) and there needs to be a system in place to ensure a guest’s cast goes to their own TV, not one in the room next door. Netflix, apparently, hasn’t completely done away with casting. Some older Chromecast devices and TVs that support Google Cast are still able to utilize the technology. That’s only available to subscribers who pay for an ad-free plan, though. Ad-supported plans are unable to cast no matter where they’re attempting to do so.
Category:
E-Commerce
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