Global induction portfolio
NAR + EMEA | Global Design Manager
Redesign and expansion of all of Whirlpool Corporation's global induction cooktop portfolio in one project. This meant expanding EMEA's induction portfolio, as the company bet on the technology, and growing the induction offering in NAR.
This was a highly complex project where my role was to manage my design team, helping them navigate often opposing regional marketing needs, market complexities, and defend key design and UX principles across the portfolio. In total, 123 different models were designed, a new global graphic design management process was established, and 12 different brands across two different regions were served. One new senior graphic designer was hired and onboarded to tackle on this massive project.
Once launched, some models in the portfolio won different awards globally, including a RedDot and an IF Design Award.
With the goal to expand our reach in the well-consolidated EMEA market and in the incipient NAR market, a series of burner technology features were developed for the project. Features focused on offering users maximum flexibility for pot placement while cooking, as well as being able to cook several different pots simultaneously in the same area.
Our role in design was to translate these new burner technologies through product graphics and UI/UX solutions that best communicated to users the intended freedom and flexibility of use.
COOKING INNOVATION
CONNECTIVITY
One of the project's key features was to develop a connected integration between the cooktop and the hood. Once paired, the hood's vent speed is adjusted automatically, to match the heat levels on the cooktop burners. This way, allowing users to focus their hands on cooking, and not have to adjust any controls above head.
The connected combo earned an IF Design Award in 2020.
CHALLENGE
One of the greatest challenges of the induction cooktop category is designing meaningful product and brand differentiation. With the massive scope of the project - designing from core to premium, for 12 different brands and two different global regions - a graphic design strategy was instrumental for strategically driving this differentiation. We benchmarked the category in the different regions, as well as adjacent industries to do so.
In this process, we also had to work together with other internal stakeholders to establish a new graphic design approval process to be able to handle so much complexity.
WHIRLPOOL EMEA
PREMIUM
WHIRLPOOL EMEA
MASS
Website: Whirlpool Spain