UK design firm is ‘Apple’s best kept secret’

The agency helps transform world-renowned brands to be relevant in competitive environments by looking at design factors that drive successful human-centric experiences. Lidbury, who was recently in India for a design confluence, spoke about designing for the experience economy and how today’s consumer is more concerned with experiences and transformations than goods and services.

On the Apple association, he says, “We are known for working with Apple and collaborating with Steve Jobs in 1997 when he returned to Apple and launched his famous computer. We worked with him for close to 25 years. We tackle a multitude of categories, as our customers use products from across these categories. When talking about disruptive design and business, there’s no better example than that of Airbnb. The genius of this idea springs from the timing of its entry – right after the big crash of 2008. And people were no longer wanting to spend money on holidays. And that’s where this became a success.”

A Morgan Stanley report from 2017 says India will have close to 410 mn millennials by 2020, who will spend about $330 bn annually. Lidbury’s design philosophy is also focussed on the millennial economy, as he says, “On a global scale, 27 per cent of the world population of 7.4 bn constitute millennials. And in India, more than 34 per cent of the population comprise millennials. They will be the drivers of the biggest retail mass market in the world. Millennials are now choosing to spend money on a desirable experience or event as opposed to buying something desirable. More than 70 per cent of this segment in the US seeks experience that stimulates their senses and more than 80 per cent want brands to entertain them, so to speak.”

On how the agency rewrote rules with regard to retailing Apple’s products, Lidbury says, “We were the first to introduce kitchen table top styled displays in Apple showrooms. This was aimed at making customers feel like they were at home and not at some electronics store. And we also pioneered the idea of having our sales representatives sell iPhones, dressed in t-shirts and sneakers. The logic was that young customers needed to be able to relate to the product they were buying, and the person who was making the sales pitch.”

Closer home, Lidbury helped Airtel revamp their showrooms with a few key design and architectural changes. “Instead of the counter top reception, we opted to have cubicles, where customers could go and sit with executives and have a personalised meeting to sort out their issues. What we did was move from a confrontational design model to a collaborative problem-solving model. And the results spoke for themselves as customers were a lot more calmer and receptive to advise and suggestions.”