36 / IN CONVERSATION
Collaborative creation BEN READ AND MARISA PITSCH
The FORMIA creative team is putting sustainability at the forefront of its amenity kit production. April Waterston discovers how
Sustainability is increasingly touching every product so I asked Ben Read, creative director, and Marisa Pitsch, chief customer experience officer, to explain its role in the creative process.
Taj Group. My passion lies in creating considered strategy touching all elements of a customer experience. Together, Ben and I bring humancentered, experience-led thinking to the design process.
Q.
Q. Run us through your design process and how you bring ideas to life for your clients? B : We take a tailored approach to design which starts with understanding our clients’ requirements and aspirations. We undertake intensive research to select the most relevant
Tell us your route to our industry? B : Prior to joining FORMIA, I was already working in the amenities and comfort items industry and had worked on high profile and award-winning projects for clients such as Cathay Pacific and Emirates. My background is in analysing and forecasting trends in consumer behaviour, demographics, fashion and beauty, and translating these trends into inspired designs for the world of retail beauty. Today, airlines are more and more inspired by consumer and retail trends and these inform their amenity programmes, so a significant part of our design process leans on our research and analysis of global passenger profiles and mirrors the process of trend analysis for retail. M : I have a background in consulting and crafting award-winning experiences designed to transform airlines to world class and hotels to five-star. I’m privileged to have worked with airlines such as Etihad Airways and Qatar Airlines and hotels such as the Savoy London, the Kempinski Group and the
Our aim is to bring about data-driven change and measurable impacts to help achieve ambitious targets for ourselves and our airline clients brands which align with the airlines’ DNA, values and communities. We also consider regional and demographic consumer insights, sustainability and wellness priorities, and aim to create maximum perceived value, to budget. M : It is a fully collaborative process with the creation and sharing of designs and concepts so everyone involved feels engaged and passionate
throughout the process. We believe it’s crucial to experience the product first-hand just as the passenger will, so from the initial conversations through to production, a key part of the process is seeing and feeling the materials and experiencing the reusable functionality of a kit.
Q. What design trends are you currently excited about? B : We are excited by the airlines' increased desire to see sustainability translated into amenities. This means more innovative materials and a shift in the design approach and process to ensure greater good for our planet and for communities. Wellness is another very interesting trend now gaining momentum postpandemic. It challenges airlines to think beyond the hard product like lighting and comfort in the cabin, to look more closely at product ingredients, engaging the senses, sleep quality and how you continue to incorporate aspects and lifestyle routines across the journey. These are all becoming part of the amenity kit mix now. Finally, the notion of ‘radical reform’ is impaortant - current global, social and cultural influences and how they have impact people, communities and everyday lives. People’s priorities are changing, there have been dynamic shifts in thinking all influencing consumers and inspiring design.
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In Convo Formia v4.indd 36
3/29/22 12:33 PM
