The Challenge: Keeping the “Creativit-tea” Flowing
Kung Fu Tea had just lost a crucial internal designer and was badly in need of fresh perspective and reliable design support.
A fresh menu calls for fresh ideas. Creativity was something Kung Fu Tea wasn’t going to continue business without. Marketing and PR Lead, Mai Shi, was responsible for securing a proper solution to ensure the company never went a day without a creative backup. Unfortunately, that day still came. After a main internal designer left, the urgent need to replace the position grew significantly.
Even after trying design agencies and freelancing gigs, there was still something missing when it came to fulfilling projects and their needs. Despite the lack of a working team, the need for a fresh set of eyes became just as important as working hands. The only way this was possible was to outsource, but not with the standard agencies or freelancing marketplaces. As a leader in marketing, finding the right people for the job was a serious task that couldn’t be forgotten.
Mai shares its significance by explaining that “having somebody who really understands the design process and our brand identity is crucial to us and me in my work.” This meant having skill sets that you can’t just expect out of one internal creative team member.
The Solution: A Fresh Set of Eyes and Fast Results
Designity delivered the creative boost and design support Kung Fu Tea needed, offering fresh ideas and consistent assets to keep their innovation going strong without having to rebuild an internal team.
Kung Fu Tea came with a unique set of objectives to accomplish. Where other clients use Designity as their only creative solution, a company of this size called for two solutions. Beyond needing to fulfill the role of just one designer, there was also an underlying need to develop their own type of creative department. While hiring their own expansive in-house department was an option, it wasn’t a cheap one and certainly not one you could easily trial and error with.
Designity’s 2-week trial is what initially attracted the company to the idea of using the solution as an add-on to their existing team. The trial assured her marketing team was able to experience the possibilities with confidence in the quality and collaborative relationship. Although not the only working team, Designity became the better-fitting option to expand the brand’s horizon.
No Ideas Left Behind
Aside from the digital world the industry works hard to keep up with, packaging is another integral focus for food and beverage brands. With a growing menu of new offerings, the determination from every member to keep up is key. Creative Director, Lisa C. was particularly known for her confidence in working with package design, one of the first projects in Kung Fu Tea’s pipeline.
Naturally, the brand’s hip and young spirit was an extra perk every creative director can enjoy working with. However, when it came to presenting new, innovative ideas, providing enough options was essential to determining which best fit. And for Kung Fu Tea, exploring all the possibilities was at the top of their list.
Lisa made sure to approach the company’s projects with a method that inspired new avenues to new ideas. “I first have an intense conversation with the client about their needs, expectations, goals, and timeline. When going into concepting, I implement these, but also present alternative variations based on my experience in the field,” she explains. This ensures that no idea gets left behind and no creativity goes to waste. After getting accustomed to the new collaborative relationship, Mai points out that having a creative director was indeed a great asset to Kung Fu Tea.
<div class="c-blog_comp-cta cc-component-1"><div class="c-blog_comp-cta-left"><div class="c-blog_comp-cta-left-wrap"><img src="https://global-uploads.webflow.com/61cdf3c5e0b8155f19e0105b/6334d81a29c751ccd8c26638_brain-orchestra.png" loading="lazy" alt="" sizes="(max-width: 479px) 93vw, (max-width: 767px) 96vw, 363px" srcset="https://global-uploads.webflow.com/61cdf3c5e0b8155f19e0105b/6334d81a29c751ccd8c26638_brain-orchestra-p-500.png 500w, https://global-uploads.webflow.com/61cdf3c5e0b8155f19e0105b/6334d81a29c751ccd8c26638_brain-orchestra.png 500w" class="c-blog_comp-cta-left-img"></div></div><div class="c-blog_comp-cta-right"><div class="c-blog_comp-content"><div class="c-text-wrapper cc-mb-32"><div class="c-title-4 cc-bold"><strong>Want to save money without sacrificing the quality?</strong></div></div><div class="c-text-wrapper"><div class="c-text-2">Say goodbye to traditional, expensive agencies and unreliable marketplaces. Say hello to Designity.</div></div></div><div class="c-blog_comp-wrapper"><a href="/pricing" target="_blank" class="c-button cc-primary cc-inverted w-button"><strong>Get Your 2-Week Trial</strong></a></div></div></div>
A Bubbly Experience
With today’s competitive landscape, finding fresh inspiration and content to share is a common struggle. Even with the most talented in-house teams, many companies find themselves desperate for a fresh set of eyes. This was especially true for Mai, who came to Designity “to get a fresh look from someone who has an outside view.” This particularly references the ability to gather new ideas that the internal team would otherwise not have come up with on their own.
Because of the collaboration’s seamless communication, projects and decisions were able to move just as fast as the ideas. With this particular unique situation, finding the balance between the opinions of both teams became somewhat of a challenge, but that was nothing Lisa couldn’t solve.
Once projects were completed with Designity, they were handed to Kung Fu Tea’s internal team, who would tie up any loose ends before their launch. This was all done by keeping in close contact with their main designer, Paul, who kept in touch with Lisa on decisions. With weekly video calls scheduled and the open minds of both teams, there was nothing in their way.
The Results: Reliable and Consistent Marketing Assets
Kung Fu Tea gained a creative partnership to fuel faster turnarounds and ensure a steady stream of fresh, eye-catching, and engaging content.
Creativity is no linear journey and certainly isn’t something easily perfected. With the collaborative effort between Designity and Kung Fu Tea’s in-house team, reaching desired outcomes was significantly easier. Without the powerful duo, Mai shares that they would have hired another in-house designer or collaborated with freelancers, however, she also shares that both options would have been more time-consuming.
“It is great to have this combination between our in-house designer who has all the insights into our company, and Designity, who gives us fresh ideas with a view from the outside,” says Mai. Although their marketing team already had working hands, the addition of Designity was able to assist in producing more content, more efficiently.
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It’s not every day that companies utilize unique combinations of creative resources, but the results are far worth all the planning. Kung Fu Tea’s experience is just an example of how Designity isn’t just a solution for companies that don’t have any creative team at all, but even for those that do. Whether solo or as an addition, having multiple backups for every creative project ensures that a company never runs out of content. And in today’s competitive world, running out of content isn’t an option, but Designity is.
About Kung Fu Tea
Headquartered in New York City, Kung Fu Tea is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to bubble tea. With over 300 shops, the sensational brand expands from the US to Canada, and as far as Australia. While crafting aesthetically pleasing beverages is one part of their innovative mission, crafting drinks that taste as good as they look is what they’re best known for.
Kung Fu Tea is especially popular for its youthful and fun in-store environments, grabbing the attention of all ages. On the other hand, the company aims for its brand to promote “fearlessness” and inspire creativity with every sip. Whether that’s through the flavorful ingredients in their fresh beverages or their playful branding, Kung Fu Tea certainly knows how to inspire.
Disclaimer: Because we prioritize the privacy and security of our clients, some information or visuals may be missing from this case study.
