Insights Lesson II

A Crash Course on Creativity Professor Tina Seelig, Stanford University

By Steve Grudziecki 10/30/2012 Store photos taken with iPhone. Additional stories, photos and images taken from company websites

1990sToday The Bass brand continues to be the manufacturer capturing the essence of American casual and weekend footwear throughout the United States, Europe, Asia and South America

The Bass Store

Before you enter the store: Store doors are in center of store and windows are large and open showing the inside of the store. Environment: It is clean and well lighted, carpeted and check out is at front next to a wall of socks. No real color scheme and smells of leather shoes. Store is comfortable in temperature and is easy to maneuver around. Store shoes are at eye level for an average male or female height. Clothing items are stacked higher and on the walls sides. Personnel: A welcome greeting from more than one staff member. No uniforms for staff, just name tags. Staff is half womena and half men. Products: Shoes for men on left and shoes for women on right and clothing on side aisles, men on left, women products on right if you walking into the store. All products on sale and clearance products in back next to dressing rooms. Pricing is marked clearly but there is no deals for buy 1 and get 2 more items for half price or free. Customers: A few couples, a few solo shoppers, ages range from kids to older adults, males seems to think harder in the decision process, women are browsing
1870s - George Henry Bass, the owner of a tannery in Wilton, Maine, embarks upon a career in shoemaking when he purchases shares of E.P. Packard & Co., a local shoe manufacturer. George becomes the sole owner and changes the name of the company to G.H. Bass & Co. Bass takes orders, delivers shoes to his customers and gleans feedback from the wearers so he could make the best possible shoe.

https://bassshoes.harborghb.com/ bass-shoes-history

The Nike Store

Before you enter the store: Store has a nice entrance way. Notice items are set back from store entrance as you walk in. Environment: Clean, well lighted, large windows at front bring in light and temperature is nice. Personnel: Staff wear t-shirts and ask if you need any assistance. More males are working than females at this time. Products: Shoes are sold. Men styles on right and women on left. Other products include various sporting apparel like running, basketball and golf. Retired Pro basketball player Michael Jordon has his own section against the wall near front corner window. Customers: All ages and all types in store. Some families shopping with children.
http://www.dinesh.com/history_of_logos/miscellaneous_logos_-_design_and_history/nike_logo_-_design_and_history.html

The Nike Swoosh is a design created in 1971 by Carolyn Davidson, a graphic design student at Portland State University. She met Phil Knight while he was teaching accounting classes and she started doing some freelance work for his company, Blue Ribbon Sports (BRS). BRS needed a new brand for a new line of athletic footwear it was preparing to introduce in 1972. Knight approached Davidson for design ideas, and she agreed to provide them, charging a rate of $2 per hour. In June 1971, Davidson presented a number of design options to Knight and other BRS executives, and they ultimately selected the mark now known globally as the Swoosh. Davidson submitted a bill for $35 for her work. (In 1983, Knight gave Davidson a gold Swoosh ring and an envelope filled with Nike stock to express his gratitude.) The logo represents the wing of the Greek Goddess.The Nike logo is a classic case of a company gradually simplifying its corporate identity as its frame increases. The companys first logo appeared in 1971, when the word Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, was printed in orange over the outline of a checkmark, the sign of a positive mark. Used as a motif on sports shoes since the 1970s, this checkmark is now so recognizable that the company name itself has became superfluous. The solid corporate logo design check was registered as a trademark in 1995. The Nike logo design is an abstract wing, designed by Carolyn Davidson, was an appropriate and meaningful symbol for a company that marketed running shoes. The JUST DO IT slogan and logo design campaign communicated such a strong point of view to their target market that the meaning for the logo design symbol evolved into a battle cry and the way of life for an entire generation. Isnt it amazing how a small symbol we call a logo design can make a company into a huge success. The Nike logo is a registered trademark of Nike. Use of the logo here does not imply endorsement of the organization by this site. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Swoosh

Pepperridge Farm Store

Before you enter the store: Store is not so inviting. Its a small store about the size of average master bedroom. Environment: Check out at front on both sides but it is crowded at check out because of size of store Personnel: A welcome greeting by two employees but with no uniforms on. Staff is entirely female. Products: All kinds of baked good with lots of flavors to choice from. Cold refrigerated items are in back in a four door freezer system like a grocery store. Products are colorful and lively packaged. Products are being sold as package deals, if you buy 3 products and 4 product price is lower than individual products. Some products are items that you might not find in your local grocery store because the flavor is unique. Customers: There are a few customers in store and moving around with a basket or someone with a mini push grocery cart makes it challenging. Margaret Rudkin, a Connecticut housewife and mother of three young children, discovers one of her sons has an allergy to commercial breads that contain preservatives and artificial ingredients. So in 1937, she begins experimenting with baking her own preservative-free bread for her ailing son -ultimately perfecting a delicious whole-wheat loaf that contained only natural ingredients. Encouraged by her family and her sons doctor, she begins a small business out of her kitchen selling her Pepperidge Farm bread to local grocers. Named for her familys farm in Fairfield, Connecticut, consumers recognize her homemade breads quality and buy every loaf she baked.
http://www.pepperidgefarm.com/History.aspx

DICKS Sporting Goods was founded in 1948 when an 18 year-old Dick Stack was working at an Army surplus store in Binghamton, New York. An avid fisherman, Dick was approached by the store owner to come up with a list of products needed to get into the fishing tackle business. After Dick presented his suggestions, the owner told him he was a dumb kid and had no idea what he was doing. Dick was upset and promptly quit. He went to his grandmothers house where he spent a lot of time as a kid and told her what had happened. Dicks grandmother asked how much it would cost to build the store himself. Dick said it would cost $300. His grandmother then went to the cookie jar where she kept her life savings and gave him $300 and told him do it yourself. Dick used that money and his relentless work-ethic to open a bait-and-tackle shop in Binghamton. By 1958, he expanded his product line to include much of what youll find at DICKS Sporting Goods today.

Before you enter the store: Store is not so inviting. Door entry way is underneath a walk way and the angle that you arrive in at the store seems tight and cramped. Double glass doors give off a cold appearance. Environment: Besides the usual welcome greeting the first thing you notice is how hot/warm it is. With colder temperature outside this 30 degree swing is uncomfortable. Personnel: A welcome greeting is usually a norm but you will notice most of the employes are dressed in shorts and t-shirts. Products: Sporting good of all types are sold here. It is a two level store so if you have a niche in a particular sport (archery, badminton, hunting) you can find it at this store. Other items are sport shoes, gear, nick nacks a large rock wall Customers: There are families, adults and children. At check out someone is buying some weights, another some clothes.
Ed Stack, Dicks son, is the current CEO and Chairman of DICKS Sporting Goods. He and his siblings bought the store from their father and are responsible for taking two stores and growing the chain to over 500 stores. Dicks Sporting Goods, Inc. is an authentic full-line sporting goods retailer offering a broad assortment of brand name sporting goods equipment, apparel and footwear in a specialty store environment. The Company owns and operates Golf Galaxy, LLC, a golf specialty retailer and eCommerce websites and catalog operations for both Dicks Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy.

Dicks Sporting Goods Store

Dicks family continues to offer the finest quality products at competitive prices, backed by the best service anywhere. Like you, we have a real passion for http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/dick-s-sporting-goods-inc-history/ sports.

Barnes and Noble Store

Before you enter the store: The entrance is nice with double doors with a grand entry at the center of the store. The windows you walk by are tall and allow for looking into the book store environment. Environment: Clean, and well lighted. The Check out at front and off to the left from when you walk in. A coffee shop is off to the right when you walk in with seating. Atmosphere is laid back and casual. Sound is minimum Personnel: No greeting Products: Books are the main sale but at check out counter area lots of nick nacks items. Found a new marketing piece called Sparkcharts (see picture at left) which are short, brief information sheets on all types of topics. Need to refresh on your Spanish or algebra II, these sheets allow that. The first product on display where the latest Kindle/Electronic book. Customers: See more female customers than male. Day of visit was in the fall on a Sunday.

Leonard Riggio Acquires Barnes & Noble Leonard Riggio, the companys chairman, began his bookselling career while attending New York University in the early 1960s. Working as a clerk in the university bookstore, he became convinced that he could do a better job serving students, and he opened a competing store of his own. With a small investment, Mr. Riggio established the Student Book Exchange (SBX) in Manhattans Greenwich Village in 1965. The store quickly became one of New Yorks finest bookstores, known for its knowledgeable staff, wide selection and great service. By the 1970s, Mr. Riggios thriving business, which included six other college bookstores, acquired the flagship Barnes & Noble trade name and flagship bookstore in Manhattan, which had fallen into decline. Within a few years, Mr. Riggio transformed the Fifth Avenue store into The Worlds Largest Bookstore, with 150,000 textbook and trade titles. Mr. Riggios commitment to students continues today through Barnes & Noble College Booksellers, a wholly owned subsidiary of Barnes & Noble that operates more than 600 college bookstores on college and university campuses in 50 states, serving nearly 4 million students and more than 250,000 faculty. http://www.barnesandnobleinc.com/our_company/history/bn_history.html

TARGET STORE
Before you enter the store: The store draws you in for all the different selection that you can purchase in a one stop shop setting, doors are electric and the Target brand is a san serif font. Environment: Environment can vary from really busy to not crowded at all. Ceiling are high and the floors are concrete with carpeting in the clothes sections. Personnel: Greetings and help fullness can vary. Some staff are friendly but some are not. Notice that most shoppers know what they are looking for and have been at the store hundreds of times. Products: All sorts of products are sold. Sport, clothing, jewelry, electronics, bedding, car items, furniture, office items. medicine, dog items and food items. Depending on where in store, products are arranged in aisle based on need. Coffee products on one side near other kitchen food products and health care items like toothpaste near other dental products. Packaging for toothpaste is a cool blue and coffees are natural colors packages. Customers: A few couples, a few solo, ages range from kids to older adults, males seems to think harder in the decision process, women are browsing

Bullseye began his career in ads for Target in 1999. Since then, shes become a recognizable icon for the retailer, appearing at various Targetsponsored events

1962 1993

First Target opens in Roseville, MN Tar-zhay This affectionate nickname was coined the year we opened our very first store Target team members begin to wear red and khaki

https://corporate.target.com/about/history