Little Trekkers

'Our approach to design has altered fundamentally. We thought long and hard about the financial commitment - it was a major step. But the extent of the role design has played has been a revelation, and more than justified the financial investment.'

Stephanie Butterworth, Founder, Little Trekkers

Design to refresh a brand identity and launch a new range of own brand products

 

Little Trekkers, based near Sheffield, was set up in 2002 by Stephanie Butterworth and Matthew Jones as a specialist online retailer of children's outdoor clothing.

In 2007, the company accessed the Designing Demand service for support in the development of a brand new range of outdoor clothing for children, Spotty Otter. The launch was a success - the first product was sold within 45 minutes of going live on the rebranded Little Trekkers web site.

Today, the Spotty Otter brand is sold both online and via a growing number of high street retailers, and the business has achieved all of its projections for growth in sales.

Problem

Little Trekkers' move to bigger warehouse and showroom premises in 2005 triggered a re-think about the business, including its brand.

'When we looked at our existing marketing materials, the Little Trekkers logo was used inconsistently,' Butterworth explains. 'Also, having researched the brand identity, I concluded neither our logo nor our marketing were consistent with the fun, friendly and funky image we wanted.'

Little Trekkers had paid £60 for its original logo, relying on in-house expertise to refine it. But the owners realised they would need external expertise for this project and signed up for Designing Demand service through Business Link South Yorkshire.

As well as rebranding the Little Trekkers business, Butterworth and Jones decided to develop their own product range through a new company, Spotty Otter, to sell both online and through third-party retailers.

Response

Little Trekkers had already begun discussions with a designer on a range of UV-protective swimwear. But Lesley Page, the Design Associate who worked with the company for the duration of the Design Demand project, was uncertain about its potential and went to clothing designers Glacier Blue for a second opinion.

A meeting between Glacier Blue director Sarah Renton and Butterworth led to Glacier Blue developing what became Spotty Otter's first product range. 'I wasn't convinced there was a gap in the market,' Renton says. 'But the thinking evolved and it was agreed that we would also develop a launch range of autumn/winter outdoor wear, with UV sun wear for a summer range to follow.'

Little Trekkers worked with Lesley Page on a design brief for the rebranding. Glacier Blue introduced Butterworth to design agency The Engine Room which was given two projects - rebranding Little Trekkers and creating the Spotty Otter brand identity. The name had already been chosen by Butterworth and partner Matthew Jones following market testing with customers, staff, family and friends.

Spotty Otter needed a brand positioning statement, and the business chose the phrase 'fun and functional' to encapsulate its unique appeal, provide direction for the look and feel of the brand, the products that would encapsulate it and the gap in the children's outdoor clothing market it aimed to fill. Spotty Otter's products and brand identity were then developed in tandem.

'Constant dialogue between all parties was essential until initial designs were created to ensure neither side of the design brief went off-message,' says The Engine Room Creative Director Darren Evans. 'Stephanie and Matthew were very clear about their requirements from the outset and developed a strong relationship with the designers early on.'

'Working with two design companies was surprisingly straightforward, Butterworth adds. 'I produced mini-briefs for each element - not to dictate design but to ensure everything matched the feel we were trying to achieve. It was also invaluable that Glacier Blue and The Engine Room had previous experience of working together.'

The resulting identity features the brand name with a distinctive letter 'o' containing a swimming otter. The first product range, launched in late 2007, comprised a selection of down coats, waterproof wear and wellington boots. 'We are thrilled,' Butterworth says.

Impact

The first Spotty Otter product was sold within 45 minutes of going live on the rebranded Little Trekkers web site. Distribution has since been extended offline into a number of retailers throughout the country. A second range of clothing, also designed by Glacier Blue, was launched in spring 2008.

'We added a lightweight waterproof range for spring/summer 2009 and tweaks were made to the clothing design for that year's autumn/winter collection, too,' Butterworth says. 'For autumn/winter 2010 we have spent the last few months re-designing the range and changing colourways, and we are now beginning to look at further products to develop in 2011.'

Looking back, the process of creating Spotty Otter represented a steep learning curve, she now admits, but the skills she has honed are already proving invaluable.

'Because of this project I am now comfortable dealing with design agencies, clothing designers, factories overseas and freight companies. This has had a knock-on effect on our staff, who no longer just deal with customers but wholesalers and retailers, too,' Butterworth explains.

'Just as importantly, our approach to design has altered fundamentally. Up front we thought long and hard about the financial commitment - investment in the branding alone represented more than ten times our design investment since 2000.

'It was a major step for us. But seeing what we've got as a result, and the extent of the role design has played, has been a revelation and has more than justified the financial investment.'

Both the Little Trekkers and Spotty Otters businesses have worked regularly with the designers since the end of the Designing Demand project on a range of trade and consumer marketing and promotional items.

'We are now much more open to allocating the funds necessary to achieve the right look and feel for all our promotional marketing activities, as well as our product design,' she adds. 'Ensuring everything is congruent with the Spotty Otter identity is crucial, and good consistent design in all aspects of the business goes a long way to help achieving this goal.'

Despite reports that the economic climate is making retailers reluctant to take on new brands, the Spotty Otter retailer base is growing. 'Current Spotty Otter retailers have restocked repeatedly as they find demand increases as local word spreads that Spotty Otter-branded clothing can be found in their shop,' says Butterworth.

As a result, the company reports, it has achieved all of its projections for growth in sales.