Case study · Leather goods & lifestyle · Eugene, Oregon
Will Leather Goods
A family-owned American leather brand with more than thirty years of craft. Working alongside founder William Adler, we led creative across product, packaging, catalogs, photography, retail and web, turning his vision and the brand's character into one consistent experience.
- Client
- Will Leather Goods
- Services
- Creative direction, product & packaging, catalogs, photo direction, retail, web & email
- Location
- Eugene, Oregon
What we did
Character in every detail
Product
Graphics, leather and color direction, hardware, trims, packaging and location-specific artwork for scarves, aprons and apparel.
Print & photo
Catalogs from concept to page flow, plus product and lifestyle photoshoots that give every piece a story.
Retail & digital
Store signage and fixtures, website direction, campaigns and email that carry the brand from the shop floor to the inbox.
Scarves & bandanas
Wear the place
Location-specific artwork for silk scarves, connecting the character of each place with Will's visual identity: illustration, color and storytelling in something you can wear.
Product & packaging
Built like the product
Working with the founder and product team on graphics, hardware, trims, packaging and product concepts, including a full leather-care system.
Catalogs & photography
Give the product a story
Catalogs from concept and layout through merchandising and page flow, with photoshoots directed to feel like a life well lived.
Web & email
A connected digital experience
Website design and development direction, campaigns and email, connecting imagery and messaging across homepages, landing pages, email and social.
Retail
Step inside the brand
For the Fort Worth store refresh: signage, environmental graphics, product displays and merchandising, built from the same materials and character as the goods.
Will Leather Goods
Will Leather Goods is a family-owned lifestyle brand based in Oregon. With over thirty years of experience in leather-craft, Will brings authenticity to every product they create.
Branding
Will’s goals have always been to bring the emotional experience of purchasing fine leather goods to their consumers through eye-catching photography and crafted marketing. Classic Americana tradition mixed with a focus on quality and craftsmanship was paramount in everything we created.
Marketing
With over 7 stores nationwide, each store opening required a unique approach. When their “World Store” opened in New York, we worked with a PR company on a guerrilla marketing style campaign where we designed posters to be mounted in repeating patterns to mimic the post no bills walls so iconic to New York.
Digital Media
Creating impactful email blasts and seasonal gift guides helped generate revenue for the brand while providing consumers an easy and intuitive way to shop.
Product Branding
Will collaborated with legendary milliner Gregory Westbrook to develop a line of custom beaver hats. We created a specialty “brand within the brand” so this product could stand-alone and also look great alongside their existing line.
When creating the catalog for the hat line, we utilized hand-illustrated graphics to reflect the craftsmanship of the product while making it really wow buyers.
Illustration
It was important for us to convey Will’s strong focus on craftsmanship and artisan techniques in their visual assets. One of the primary ways we accomplished this was through illustration, specifically a style where you felt the hand behind the graphic. We were able to use this style across mediums that included products, packaging, catalog, in-store point of sale assets, and trade marketing materials.
Environmental and Web Design
Walking into a Will Leather Goods store is an immersive experience. From the smell of the leather to the unique found objects repurposed as display cases, there is a unique DNA that can be found only at Will. Replicating this experience on a website is a tall order; through the use of strong photography blended with natural tones and textures, we were able to achieve that same sense of discovery.
