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PHASE 01:
VISUAL STRATEGY GUIDE
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01
VISUAL STRATEGY GUIDE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
/ LOOKING BACK
06
BRAND OVERVIEW
08
HOW ERECTOR BEGAN
10
ERECTOR TIMELINE
14
PREVIOUS LOOK
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/ LOOKING FORWARD
18
OUR MISSION
20
REBRANDING OBJECTIVE
22
FUTURE DIRECTION
24
OUR AUDIENCE
34
OUR COMPETITORS
LOOKING BACK
04 / 05
/ BRAND OVERVIEW / HOW ERECTOR BEGAN / ERECTOR TIMELINE / PREVIOUS LOOK
Visual Strategy Guide
/ BRAND OVERVIEW
(1913 – 1966, the late 1980s - 2005)
An Erector Set (the trademark has always been “ERECTOR”) is a brand of metal toy construction sets, originally patented by Alfred Carlton Gilbert and first sold by his company in 1913. Erector consists of various metal beams with regular holes for assembly using nuts and bolts. Erector was first envisioned by Alfred Carlton Gilbert (A.C. Gilbert) in 1911, as he rode the train from New Haven to New York City. This section of track was being electrified and Gilbert watched as steel girders were erected to carry the power lines. This construction is what inspired him to develop the toy.
“ The greatest influence in the life of a boy are his toys.” —Alfred Carlton Gilbert An Americaninventor, athlete, magician, toy-maker and businessman. Gilbert is best known as the inventor of the Erector Set.
Visual Strategy Guide
/ HOW ERECTOR BEGAN Period One: 1913 – 1966 A.C Gilbert started the Mysto Magic Co. in 1909. In 1913 he developed the Erector set. At this time there were several construction toys out. The most prominent was the Meccano construction toy developed by Hornby in England. It was made up of pulleys, gears, and several 1/2” wide strips of varying length with holes evenly spaced on them. These sets were very popular. Gilbert needed something unique. What he created was the square girder. Gilbert’s Erector sets had pulleys, gears, and several 1” wide strips with triangles cut in them and the edges bent over. This allowed for 4 strips to be put together with 2 screws to form a very sturdy square girder. The sets were numbered 1 to 8 according to size. The smaller set were in cardboard boxes with the larger sets in wooden boxes. The smallest of the largest sets had a DC motor included in them. The most you could build with these sets were structures: buildings, bridges, and etc. The next change came in 1924. The Girders went from 1” to 1/2”. This allowed for small curved girders to be used in more impressive models. Trucks, ferriswheels, zeppelins, and many other action models could be built. In 1931 he came out with
the Erector Hudson and Tender. A very impressive model. In the mid 30’s the wooden boxes were dropped for metal boxes. In 1940 he came out with the Parachute Jump. Another interesting thing happened in the 40’s. A war was on and there was a lack of metal. Gilbert developed wooden girders. These are rare today. In 1950 he came out with the Amusement Park set. This set had a great little model, the merry-go-round. By this time the largest set was the 12 1/2. Another big seller of Gilbert was American Flyer trains. They were really big in the 50’s. By the late 50’s A.C. Gilbert Sr. had turned the company over to his son, A.C. Gilbert Jr.. In 1961 Gilbert Sr. died. In 1965 the company was bought by the Gabriel Co. By 1966 the A. C. Gilbert toy company was bankrupt. In 1961 A. C. Gilbert died. In order to settle estate taxes his majority holding in the company that bore his name was sold off. Although A. C.’s son remained as head of the company, the real power rested with the new majority owners who had big ideas about the direction that Erector and the A. C. Gilbert company’s other toys should take. By 1966 the A. C. Gilbert toy company was bankrupt.
Period Two: The late 1980s - 2005 The A. C. Gilbert and Erector names were acquired by Gabriel Toys, then Ideal Toys and went through several other hands before the Erector name was eventually purchased by Meccano in the late 1980’s. In the early 1990’s Meccano started selling its sets in the US as Erector sets. Those sets are just Meccano sets with the Erector name and have been imported by Irwin Toys. About 1999 Irwin decided to stop importing Meccano-Erector into the US except for the plastic Erector Junior. As of August 2015, the Erector brand was relaunched under the global name Meccano.
TOP: Building bridges with an Erector Set MIDDLE: Vintage 1916 Erector Set #4 By Gilbert/ Mysto Manufacturing Co. With Wood Box BOTTOM: A.C. Gilbert Erector 1926 “Whites 7 1/2” Truck
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Visual Strategy Guide
/ ERECTOR TIMELINE
Characterized by their wide, 1¼-inch girders and cardboard or unpainted wooden boxes.
Characterized by their narrower (5/8-inch) redesigned girders,wooden cases (painted red beginning in 1928), and new parts and pieces.
Marked by a change from wooden cases to painted metal cases.
The bright red cases typical of this period have become an icon to many of us Baby Boomers.
Style I
Classic
Transition
Renaissance
1913
1924
1913
1924
1928
1940
1950
The late 1950’s
The New Erector, Hudson and Tender, was introduced.
Wooden cases were painted red beginning in 1928.
As the world war II was on and there was a lack of metal. Gilbert developed wooden girders.
Gilbert came out with the Amusement Park set.
Gilbert Sr. had turned the company over to his son.
Gilbert marketed his first construction toy under the name “Erector Set”.
1913
1932
1945
1932 WOODEN CASES
METAL CASES
Relaunch 1962
The late 1980’s
2005
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1966
1961 Gilbert Sr. died.
1962
Gilbert toy company was bankrupt.
The late 1980’s Bankrupt
The Erector name was purchased by Meccano eventually.
The early 1990’s Meccano started selling its sets in the US as Erector sets. Those sets are just Meccano sets with the Erector name and imported by Irwin Toys.
2005 The Erector brand was relaunched under the global name Meccano.
Visual Strategy Guide
First Erector Set
1913
1924
1928
Gilbert Erector #8 1/2 Hudson & Tender Set, Vintage, Original
1940
1950
The late 1950’s
Gilbert Erector Amusement Park Rides Sets, Ferris Wheel
Gilbert Sr. died in 1961. By 1967, Gilbert’s family was out of business.
Vintage Meccano Metal Construction Erector Set #1
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1961
1966
Gilbert Erector Amusement Park Rides Sets, Carousel
The late 1980’s
The early 1990’s
2005
Visual Strategy Guide
/ PREVIOUS LOOK The key visual of the old Erector was creating building toys for boys. In the most time, boys played with boys at school. At that time, the materials of the building toys were wooden and metal. People owning construction sets had cozy homes. The overall mood and tone were male and practical.
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LOOKING FORWARD
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/ OUR MISSION / REBRANDING OBJECTIVE / FUTURE DIRECTION / OUR AUDIENCE / OUR COMPETITORS
Visual Strategy Guide
/ OUR MISSION
Erector’s mission is to inspire people’s imagination and encourage them to experience the meaning in making and teamwork. What’s more, they can build relationships with other people while playing.
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Visual Strategy Guide
/ REBRANDING OBJECTIVE Erector is not only a toy brand bringing happiness to players, but also a tool for creativity and self expression. Erector will offer advanced toys relating to crafting and education, DIY tools associating with daily life, online instruction for use, events, exhibitions, apps and experiencing studios. NASA, IKEA, AIA (American Institute of Architects) and IDSA (Industrial Designers Society of America) could partner with. Erector will expand the target players. Everyone who is interested in erecting toys could be one of our family. Erector has nothing to do with age.
Visual Strategy Guide
/ FUTURE DIRECTION The new visual collage shows how the company will be changing. Erector intends to motivate people’s creativity and imagination, and to build a better social relationship while making things. The new look will be shared, technological and developmental. The visuals present an educational and advanced feeling where everybody can join the process of building to create a better world together.
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Visual Strategy Guide
/ OUR AUDIENCE Our future audience is those who would like to solve problems through making something by hand. During the building process, they fully exert their imagination to seek fresh ways to achieve their goals. New Erector will assist handmakers get closer to their dreams. In the future, Erector will build diverse platforms to gather different handmakers throughout the world.
Visual Strategy Guide
/ MIA EVANS A SCIENCE GIRL
• Mia has a curious mind. (She likes observing anything new to her and cannot stop asking different questions.) • She is a patient girl. (She often spends much time on assembling or disassembling things like a clock, a stapler.) • She is not that into Teddy Bear or Barbie. (Recently, she asked her mum to buy her the building toys about Star War.) • She is always confident because she often does her homework well without her parents’ help. • She seems a little bit introvert. (Actually she just doesn’t like talking too much.) • She likes little animals. (She often wonders why they are so different from human.) • Sometimes she is careless. (She often forgets to bring the home key.)
Age:
8 years old
Location:
Los Angeles, CA
Nationality:
United States
/ STEVEN NG AN ARCHITECTURE STUDENT
• Steven tries to stay creative. (Because he believes creative thinking is important for an architecture student.) • He is not good at time management. (He often feels that he still has many assignments and architecture models to do.)
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• He is pretty smart. (Steven is good at mathematics and has a strong understanding of building disciplines.) • He is willing to work hard. (Because he thinks it will be his responsibility to make sure every project is safe and sturdy, and that isn’t something that can be done with little effort.) • He likes to play with cards. (Because he thinks playing cards can promote logic and memory.) • He has a love of nature. (Because staying outdoor makes him relaxed.) • He is passionate. (He always tries his best to do every project. ) • He is outgoing, but doesn’t have a great social skill. (He wishes to have a higher social level, because in the future he needs to communicate well with his clients.)
Age:
23 years old
Location:
Cincinnati, OH
Nationality:
Singapore
Visual Strategy Guide
/ JASON CAMPBELL A PLAYFUL DAD
• Jason is considering to buy a model toy to play with his son and hopes his son loves the toy as well. (Because he grew up playing with different building toys. ) • He is easygoing. (His son, Noah, likes climbing up on him and talking with him.) • He is Noah’s best friend. (He was Noah’s first soccer coach as well.) • Jason is good at handicraft. (He thinks crafting is an interesting and useful skill.) • He thinks Lego bricks are too expensive as toys, although he is willing to buy any toys for his son. • Jason feels he is the master chef, while Noah is his assistant. (He thinks cooking is also a kind of playing.) • He thinks his favorite time after work is accompanying his wife and son . • He accepts his son isn’t exactly like him. (Because everyone is different and he knows this well.)
Age:
38 years old
Location:
London
Nationality:
United Kingdom
Occupation: Marketing
Analyst
/ ROBERT MORRIS AN INDUSTRIAL DESIGNER
• Robert is a good listener. (Because as a designer, listening in collections helps identify problems.) • He is knowledgeable on production methods and materials.
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• Robert is patient. (He needs to stay patient to find and solve problems at work.)
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• He is resourceful. (He also needs to be resourceful so that he knows what to find and where to find the design problems.) • He has a great social skill. (He is able to engage in meaningful conversations with clients to ensure both parties are in agreement of the work that is being done.) • Robert is careful. (Because he needs to be aware of his target audience and tailors so that his design can meet the expectations of them.) • He likes to collect classic toys.
Age:
57 years old
Location:
Calais
Nationality:
France
Visual Strategy Guide
/ BARBARA SANDERS A LOVING GRANDMOTHER
• Barbara has a ball with the new bought Erector Set and says it’s much better than the kits she had in 1972. • She is a playful grandmother. (She’d love to try new activities and devices.) • Barbara is generous—not only buying toys and gifts, but generous with her time. • She is considerate. (She often learns how to see the world through a child’s eyes.) • Barbara cannot stop learning. (If she can, she always adds to her development.) • She loves kids sitting with her. (She feels lonely since her husband passed away.) • Barbara likes walking around in the afternoon and talking to her old neighbors.
Age:
72 years old
Location:
Toronto
Nationality:
Canada
Occupation: Secretary
(Retired)
/ FAN LAN A SINGLE MAN
• Fan is always passionate. (He hates being bored. His most recent hobby is building Chinese ancient architecture models.) • He thinks he is a team player. (He’d like to join one at his workplace.)
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• Fan is determined. (Developing and keeping check of softwares and programs is not an easy task. He has to be determined at work.) • He has a cool head with an open mind. (He always achieves good results wherever in school or at work.) • Fan wants to stay creative. (Creativity allows him to work in smarter ways and explore areas which aren’t usually explored.) • He relaxes himself by reading at home. (After getting off work or on weekends, he is lazy to go outside.) • Fan is always confident. He thinks most things he met in his life were not that hard for him.
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Age:
29 years old
Location:
Shanghai
Nationality:
China
Occupation: Computer
Engineer
Visual Strategy Guide
/ LUCAS COLE (THE OUTLIER) A VIDEO GAMER
• Lucas has a high level in video game (He hasn’t touched other toys like wood blocks for around four years.) • He likes adventures in the virtual world. (He thinks the real world is less interesting than the virtual world.) • Lucas used to play the building toys with his friends when he is a little boy. But now nobody around him play this kind of toy. • His mum feels that he is addicted to video game. But he thinks it is also a educational way and can motivate his creativity. • Lucas is introvert, except for the time that he is playing video games with his cousin.) • He has no confidence to enter a good high school in the future. (Because he doesn’t performance well in school.) • Lucas has a good memory. He never got lost wherever he was.
Age:
14 years old
Location:
San Jose, CA
Nationality:
United States
/ JESSICA KNIGHT (THE OUTLIER) A FASHION BUYER
• In Jessica’s mind, toys are just about dolls, Barbie and wood blocks. (She doesn’t think she is good at handicraft.) • Her most important thing is fingering on the pulse of fashion. (She thinks it can inspire creativity as well.)
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• Jessica hasn’t bought toys since she graduated from college. (She thinks there is no connection between fashion and building toy.) • She was used to holding a Teddy bear to sleep when she was a little girl. • She is not interested in building toys. (When she was young, she tried to play building toys with her friends, she felt that she lacked logics.) • Jessica likes Barbie because Barbie dolls show the trends of fashion. (Girls owning Barbie can design and make clothing for their Barbies.) • She is confident in fashion, but not in playing some practical games or toys.
Age:
26 years old
Location:
Seattle, WA
Nationality:
United States
Occupation: Shop
Assistant
Visual Strategy Guide
/ OUR COMPETITORS Current Competitors The category mainly focuses on the brands that have similar products currently, and tries to figure out their differentiations from my brand. The goal is to find the advantages of my brand. The soul of new Erector is to bring imagination to life and build the future together. The brand is not only created for children, but also for anyone who is always full of imagination, curious, and loving to explore.
Lego consists of colourful interlocking plastic bricks accompanying an array of gears, figurines called minifigures, and various other parts.
Mega Bloks, a line of construction set toys, is its most popular product. In 2014, Mega Brands’ Bloks was second in sales of toy construction building sets with $4 billion.
K’NEX ’s building system consists of interlocking plastic rods, connectors, gears, wheels, and other components, which can be pieced together to form a wide variety of models, and architectural structures. KRE-O is a line of construction toys (similar to Lego and Mega Bloks) manufactured by South Korea-based Oxford and marketed by Hasbro.
Take-n-Play Thomas & Friends (formerly named Take Along Thomas & Friends) is a series of die-cast ‘Thomas’ models made by Learning Curve and designed for preschool children. Although Meccano has always been seen as an engaging education toy, today the brand focuses on promoting engineering and robotics through fun play to support STEM learning. Best-Lock offers different sized blocks including Standard Blocks, Junior Blocks, and Baby Blocks. Themes for Standard Blocks include Town sets (Police, Fire and Construction), military, pirates, farming. Bandai is a Japanese toy maker and former video game company, as well as the producer of a large number of plastic model kits.
The Tinkertoy Construction Set is a toy construction set for children. The cornerstone of the set is a wooden spool in diameter with holes drilled every 45 degrees around the perimeter and one through the center. Lincoln Logs is a U.S. children’s toy consisting of notched miniature logs, used to build small forts and buildings. They were invented by John Lloyd Wright, second son of the architect Frank Lloyd Wright.
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Visual Strategy Guide
Adjacent Competitors The category mainly focuses on the brands that have a close relationship to my brand currently, and tries to make a closer cooperation with some of them in the future. These brands expand the developing scope of new Erector to some extent. They are the fields of education, video or board games, film, and so on.
Play-Doh is a modeling compound used by young children for art and craft projects at home and in school. Composed of flour, water, salt, boric acid, and mineral oil.
VTech is a Hong Kong-based global supplier of electronic learning products from infancy to preschool and the world’s largest manufacturer of cordless phones.
LeapFrog is an educational entertainment and electronics company, which designs, develops, and markets technology-based learning products and related content for the education of children. The brand was named as the original diecast Matchbox toys, which were sold in boxes similar in style and size to those in which matches were sold.
Tonka is an American producer of toy trucks. Maisto International, which makes diecast vehicles, acquired the rights to use the Tonka name in a line of 1:64 scale diecast vehicles. National Geographic Kids is the child brand of National Geographic Partners. Nat Geo Kids is the only kids brand with a world-class scientific organization at its core.
Electronic Arts is an American video game company that was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers responsible for its games. Hasbro is an American multinational toy and board game company. Hasbro is the third largest toy maker in the world with revenues of approximately $4.45 billion.
Disney is best known for the products of its film studio, Walt Disney Studios, which is today one of the largest and best-known studios in American cinema.
Monopoly is a board game as a way to demonstrate that an economy which rewards wealth creation is better than one in which monopolists work under constraints.
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Visual Strategy Guide
Aspirational Competitors In this category, there are educational organizations/institutes, furniture retailers, product manufacturers and service providers. These brands have already begun to explore the possibilities of expanding people’s vision with various advanced technologies and deep research. We examine the aspirational competitors to figure out the expansive possibilities of new Erector.
NASA is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for the civilian space program as well as aeronautics and aerospace research. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States, offers education, government advocacy, and public outreach to support the architecture profession. The Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA) is a membership-based organization that promotes the practice and education of industrial design.
3D Systems is a company that engineers, manufactures and sells 3D printers. 3D Systems creates product concept models, precision and functional prototypes, master patterns for tooling.
The California Academy of Sciences is a natural history museum in San Francisco, California. With exhibits and education becoming significant endeavors of the museum during the 20th century. The Home Depot, Inc. is a home improvement supplies retailing company that sells tools, construction products, and services.
National Geographic is the official magazine, which is known for its thick square-bound glossy format with a yellow rectangular border and its extensive use of photographs.
The Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker. The company sells automobiles and commercial vehicles under the Ford brand and most luxury cars under the Lincoln brand. General Electric is an American multinational conglomerate corporation. As of 2016, the company operates through the following segments: Power & Water, Oil and Gas, Aviation, Healthcare, Transportation. Bosch delivered the smartest, most efficient robomower to date last year. The German firm also released autonomous cars onto the Autobahn in an attempt to make Google’s robocar tests in Nevada.
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“
I’m looking forward to the future, and feeling grateful for the past. —Michael Gregory Rowe An American actor primarily known as a television host and narrator
Visual Strategy Guide
/ WORKS CITED Watson, Bruce. The Man Who Changed How Boys and Toys Were Made. New York: Penguin, 2003. Print. Cox, Vicki. “Collecting Erector Sets.” American Profile. N.p., 01 Dec. 2010. Web. 08 Mar. 2017. “Vintage 1916 Erector Set #4 By Gilbert / Mysto Manufacturing Co. With Wood Box.” Terapeak. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2017. “Erector Sets and Other Metal Construction Toys at Girders & Gears.” Girders & Gears. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Mar. 2017. Carberry, Sonja. “Erector Set Inventor A.C. Gilbert Elevated Kids’ Toys.” Investor’s Business Daily. Investor’s Business Daily, 27 Jan. 2016. Web. 08 Mar. 2017. Carberry, Sonja. “Erector Set Inventor A.C. Gilbert Elevated Kids’ Toys.” Investor’s Business Daily. Investor’s Business Daily, 27 Jan. 2016. Web. 08 Mar. 2017. “Gilbert Erector #8 1/2 Hudson & Tender Set, 1931/32 Vintage, Original For Sale.” Used Gilbert Erector #8 1/2 Hudson & Tender Set, 1931/32 Vintage, Original - UBB.threads. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2017.
Primary Typefaces Body: Museo Sans 500 8pt Heading: Museo Sans 700 24pt Quote: Museo Sans 500 32pt Folio: Avenir Heavy 8pt Academy of Art University School of Graphic Design GR 604 Nature of Identity, Spring 2017 Instructor: Hunter Wimmer