case-study

Designed for Europe

Kangaro Industries Ltd. Design

Kangaro represents one of the strongest stationary brands in Asia. It also holds the distinction of being one of the largest manufacturers of stationary products in the world With such a strong legacy, the brand controls a large section of the Asian market. However, it held a comparatively weak position in European markets, and was looking to strengthen its position here through design.

European design demanded a different aesthetic and visual language, but also it was important to maintain that language through the complexity offered by different variants across sizes, and also across different materials used. Moreover, in Europe staplers are used differently depending on the context of use, and it was critical to design for specific use functions ergonomically, but also deliver a consistent design language inspite of the same.

Product Nowa
Industry Consumer Goods
Scope
  • Research
  • Design
  • Engineering
  • Development
  • Prototyping
project
New aesthetic but consistent design language

Kangaro Nowa is a range of staplers designed for the European market. The contemporary, iconic design maintains its visual coherence across sizes and materials. The core design objective was to elevate the stapler to the status of a lifestyle product, from being a purely functional piece of office stationery. In stationery products that extend over different sizes, the overall range often lacks a sense of uniformity or resemblance. Kangaro Nowa maintains a consistent visual language despite several size variants and different styles of usage across the range.

Designed for usability

Staplers represent a product category that demands special attention to ergonomics given its use. European usage reflected different styles for different types of staplers, depending on the context of use. It was important to design the staplers to offer optimized ergonomics for these different styles of usage. The form features a continuous curved surface, which helps in providing a smooth, gentle grip to the user’s hand. A handy staple remover is provided at the back that also holds staples for easy refilling. The base incorporates a convenient rotating anvil, that switches between stapling and pinning, offering enhanced functionality and ergonomics of use.

project
Designed for manufacturing

Nowa staplers are available in two different materials to fit the users' choice. The handle and the base are manufactured in ABS plastic as well as sheet metal. The challenge lay in designing for seamless form and consistent look to be achieved using both materials. The design effort led the engineering outcome by demonstrating close attention to design details, giving this range a high-quality aesthetic for the global audience.

In 2018, Nowa was awarded the A design Gold award from Italy, for excellence in design.

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