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How We Design Our Sample Boxes
Our sample boxes are a staple of our brand, and epitomise what Craft Crate is all about.
We seek to offer a diverse range of products that cater to all interests and abilities, at an affordable price.
As firm believers in value for money, our sample boxes are free and feature different designs each term.
We take pride in this and therefore, thought we’d share the steps taken to produce each sample box.
The first two stages of Research and Design are arguably the most important:
1. Research
The Research Phase is the initial stage of production and is arguably the most important.
It is vital children have input in this process as these designs are catered to them.
We rely heavily on feedback during our Research Phase as it is your opinions that we care about most.
Interests
We refer to feedback from children at our own OOSH/OSHC centre as well as the wider OOSH community through googling trends, scrolling through social media pages and taking on board notes directors have sent us regarding each of our products.
From there, we are able to establish which designs are most popular, how to improve on these, and possible designs for the future.
The interests of the children are the deciding factor in all of our products.
Complexity
Feedback also assists in navigating the various abilities of the children who engage with our products.
It is not easy to cater to all ages and abilities with one design, and therefore our sample box includes multiple designs that hope to engage an array of children from K-6.
The man in charge of designing and cutting, Brad, is constantly learning new techniques as he seeks to explore the upper limitations of what is possible, given the laser cutter we use and the sustainably sourced wood available.
There are many constraints but his experimentation and tenacity has brought all our ideas to life, and he will continue to do so given his accomplishments so far.
Using ideas and interests scouted, he develops activities with varying degrees of difficulty and from there, Andrew sorts them according to various price points.
Price Points
We want to appeal to as many centres as possible.
No matter how big or small, we see you.
As we hail from a small centre ourselves, we always try to offer as much value as possible and understand the budgeting limitations when it comes to craft supplies.
We try to combat this by keeping our prices moderately low and we offer bulk pricing to make even our slightly more expensive items affordable.
Again, feedback is crucial so we can improve our pricing scale and offer you the most value.
2. Design
As mentioned, Brad is in charge of the design process of the sample box which is split into three stages.
Rough Shapes
Turning ideas into tangible products is extremely difficult.
Taking onboard feedback from the Research Phase, Brad uses CAD software to form rough outlines of what the final product will look like. This allows for rapid testing.
If an idea is unsuccessful, the laser cutter does not waste too much time , nor materials and allows Brad to swiftly move on.
Due to the properties of radiata pine (the ethically sourced wood used in all our products), there are many constraints such as the rigidity, thickness and grain.
However, once Brad designs a product that he can see will function as intended, we move on to the standardisation test.
Standardised Sheets
To ensure each item fits inside our sample box, we use standardised sheets of wood.
The regular standardised size is 195mm x 147.5mm and applies to almost all the products seen in our sample boxes.
Not only does this mean they will certainly fit, but productivity is heightened, less waste is produced and the chance of a product missing a piece or being cut short is miniscule.
Standardised sheets also assist in keeping pricing consistent and tracking how much wood is used.
Intricate details
Once a design is fitted onto the standardised sheet, Brad begins bringing it to life.
The laser cutter is able to burn through the wood at different intensities, creating a distinct difference between the outline to be popped out, and the details etched into each piece.
Etching can be extremely time consuming. Finding a balance between adding enough detail whilst ensuring production is still efficient is a fine line.
Once Brad is content with the design, phase 3 is ready to commence…
Make sure you look out for our next blog where the remaining stages are revealed.
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