The Good Design Journal
The Kickstarter Success Story That's Revolutionising How You Organise.
It's the brand that took Kickstarter by storm with their revolutionary key holders, Orbitkey is changing the way we approach organisation. As their range continues to grow and expand (hurray), we got the low down on how the brand works, innovates, and reinvents that which we thought couldn't be updated.
DS: So how did Orbitkey come to be? Was there a ‘straw the broke the camel’s back’ moment that got you thinking, “Right, this is a problem that needs solving, and it needs solving now!”?
Orbitkey: Funnily enough, yes there was that exact moment. Charles, one of our co-founders, was on a regular morning jog, when he realised that he really did not like the sound of jingling keys in his pocket.Coming from an industrial design background, he naturally attempted to solve this problem. The best solution he could find was by clamping his set of keys together using a bolt and nut – preventing the keys from moving freely.
Together with his friend and our other co-founder, Rex – they developed the idea further and launched the Orbitkey Key Organiser on Kickstarter in late 2013.
DS: Where/when do your best, or most creative, ideas come to you?
Orbitkey: 7 years on – Although highly encouraged, unfortunately we cannot rely on everyone going on morning runs to produce creative ideas. As our audience grew and as we design more products to help people organise, our creative process also evolved to become more of a user-centric approach.
Our best ideas come from learning and observing the users, and identifying opportunities we are able to incorporate into our designs.
DS: When designing a product or range, what are the major challenges you find yourselves coming up against? What do you use to overcome these?
Orbitkey: As a company, we pride ourselves in design excellence and innovation. And with that, it comes with great challenges.
For example, designing a screw-mechanism for our Key Organiser that is secure and will not loosen over time. Or coming up with a unique hinge for Nest which allows the lid to flip open or to detach completely when needed. On top of that, we need to make sure that there is a way to manufacture these solutions in an effective way.
We wish there was a secret method to overcoming these challenges but it all comes down to team work, and lots of trial and error.
It’s really hard work, but oh the feeling you get when you come up with a great solution...
DS: What do you think separates an exceptional design or product from something average?
Orbitkey: We think what exceptional products have compared to average products is the relevancy to its users.
For a product to be more relevant to the users it's designed for, it needs to have a great balance of beauty, functionality and affordability – which is often the hardest part to get right.
DS: Is there an everyday product you see or use often that you think could do with a bit of a make-over? Is there anything that just needs to be tossed out completely?
Orbitkey: Yes, there is! And it’s currently being worked on as we speak by our design team.
Here’s a little hint. It’s designed for the modern young professionals and it’s an accessory that’s commonly overlooked, until it breaks. And for people who use these, they’ll know the exact frustration.
It’s launching on Kickstarter in a few months time so you’ll see it soon enough.
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