Media Contact: Heather West, (612) 724-8760, heatherwest@earthlink.net

Compass Design's Packaging Helps Bring Blanky Soft Baby Doll from Hand-Made Idea to Globally Distributed Product

Minneapolis (March 2003) - When Britt Kiefer decided to take her Blanky Soft Baby doll from her kitchen creation to the global marketplace, she turned to Minneapolis-based Compass Design for an identity and package design that would stand out on the world's upscale toy shelves.

Kiefer has been honing her idea for years, trying to achieve a soft toy, baby doll with expressive features and playful personality. A professional artist, she was experienced at capturing movement and character in acrylics, but unexpectedly found herself exploring a child's face. "I didn't want it to be too realistic. I wanted it to be whimsical, lovable, squeezable and extremely soft." In fact, she decided to name her company after this philosophy: Soft Toy Concepts.

Early in Kiefer's discovery phase, she contacted Compass Design to create an identity that would communicate the traits of her company and its future products. Business partners and designers Mitch Lindgren and Tom Arthur depicted Soft Toy Concepts' character through gentle, cloud-shaped, hand-drawn illustration; fluffy, round letters and pastel colors.

Kiefer says she was delighted with their work, but unfortunately, she still needed to refine the product. In between work and family, she stood over the kitchen sink forming plaster masks of children's faces and sat at her sewing machine stitching huggable bodies. Dreaming of a diverse audience, she adapted a look that would represent three ethnicities: African, Asian and Caucasian.

Her idea of a simple, soft doll extended into a combination plush toy and hand puppet. A product she says "stands out in a world of battery-operated Tickle Me Elmos. Something interactive that comes alive and moves without the need for noisiness and batteries." This dual role of doll and activity also needed to be translated onto the package design.

Kiefer returned to Compass Design. "For whatever I've needed, I just go to them," she says. "I created this doll. People really liked it, but to compete with major toy companies I knew I needed packaging that would look professional without looking mass market."

"We wanted consumers to instantly recognize the toy's function as a hand puppet. We wanted them to know that it was soft and that they could squeeze and hold it," explains Lindgren. "But we also wanted to keep costs low, so we designed a single package that could be used for all three dolls."

Revisiting the original identity, the Compass team modified their previous design to fit the Blanky Soft Baby brand. The illustration now included a smiling face infant wearing a cap and holding a blanket. On the front panel next to this new brand identity, they included a direct message "I'm a hand puppet!"

Compass' staff also scheduled models and helped Kiefer select photography showing the multiple ethnicities of the doll in use. Regardless of which doll was in the package, the demonstration photos were placed on the back and side panels to show all three doll options. Additionally, Lindgren notes the package design's sky blue color with clouds in the background further communicates the toy's soft qualities.

"The blue really stands out in a sea of pink," emphasizes Kiefer who investigated typical doll packaging colors at toy stores. "Our packaging look is clean, modern and draws people in. Compass did a superb job. This was totally uncharted territory for me. It's such a relief, so refreshing to work with them. They are quick and willing to bend over backward for me. They've taken me through all the aspects of developing the package and building the brand."

Successfully introduced at toy fairs in Nuremberg, Germany; Hong Kong and New York, Blanky Soft Baby is now in worldwide distribution. It seems almost fanciful to Kiefer: "From my Singer sewing machine to a manufacturer in China - it's been an exciting and sometimes frustrating process for me. But working with Compass has been fabulous. It's so neat to see pallets and pallets of their packages ready for shipment."

With more than 40,000 shipping out to upscale toy departments and specialty stores across the globe, Kiefer adds, "The packaging has been accepted in every country - from Russia to the U.K. - with hardly a change. Even the text has remained virtually unchanged. It's unique to have an all-English product; it adds to its uniqueness."

Compass Design is a dynamic, Minneapolis-based design office specializing in comprehensive identity and consumer packaging programs for established and growing companies. With its experienced and knowledgeable staff, Compass Design strives for integrity and accuracy in its cost-effective, award-winning strategic design solutions. For more information on Compass Design, please contact Julia Hemphill at (612) 339-1595 or visit Compass Design's Web site at www.compassdesigninc.com.