Design & Product Development for a small Hawaiian inspired brand
I was lucky to be part of the ideation, research and initial line editing stages of Makanalani, a local Bay Area brand focused in creating cruisewear and beachware for women who like quality and easy travel friendly key pieces to bring to ay destination. My job was to help design new styles that had the potential to become the “bread and butter” pieces of the brand.
I was also part of the editing process of the line so that we could only focus on a few really good silhouettes where the fit was essential and key to the style. Below you can see our inspiration and how we carefully picked certain key looks that really stood out during our shopping stages.
Part of the initial stages and the most exciting part of creating this line, was to design new iterations of already exiting styles and sketching novelty pieces that will give the collection the aesthetic that the brand was looking for.
Collaboration with Textile Designers was very important since the brand relied heavily on Hawaiian inspired prints. Recoloring, editing prints and creating Millsheets with print techniques, callouts and color palettes was also part of my role.
Discussing color, fabrics and construction in every meeting was key to get a certain balance between the quality, aesthetic and beig able to meet small orders. Sourcing was mainly done by factories yet choosing the right fabrics with the right hand-feel was important.
Being part of the developing stages of a brand and building the product from concept to execution in stores is my true passion. Having to opportunity to be part of the early stages of a brand gave me the liberty to make decisions in many stages of developing the brand and for that I am truly grateful. The reward comes when you see the sample live!
