Design And Brand Strategy for Pet Shops In China

Research problem:
At present, pet industrys problem is that its brand awareness is not high,
because of the low added value, the whole pet apparel industry economic and
technical conditions is restricted, not realizing the maximization of economic
benefit.( Aopets, 2012) And there are not many specifically shops for pet, pet
owners only buy products from general online shops, e.g. Taobao, JD, Amazon,
Ebay.
This has lead to a lack of emotional connections with online shops and poor
customer experiences.

Key question:
How could design and brand strategy help to improve shopping experiences of
pet shops in China?

Aim:
To create a brand strategy for pet fashion shops in China in order to enhance
emotional brand experience and of consumers.

Objectives:
1. To gain an in-depth understanding of the pet products design and retail
design in China
2. To review literatures and current politics in the areas of experience design
and emotional branding in China
3. To investigate requirements from customers and retailers
4. To identify areas for improvement in terms of retail experience and
emotional commercials
5. To make strategic design-led recommendations for changes in pet industry
in China

Potential outcomes and beneficiaries:
This research project will create a new design and brand strategy for the pet
industry that will not only benefit shop owners but also customers as well as
the pet industry.

Methodology and a timeline:
Secondary research: literature review
Primary research: case studies( 3 successful online shops), expert interviews,
survey(observation)
Analysis and integration: data analysis
Expert appraisal: design strategist, design manager of pet industry, shop
owners
Research outcome: create a new strategy
Assessment: expert interview