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PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT FINAL PROJECT…

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PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT - A WELLNESS COMPANY - THE WELLNEST

ARIEL IONE CHRISTENSEN

Executive Summary

From the original project synopsis until now, the company formerly known as Brain Lab has now become The Wellnest. This transformation took place as a result of domain research, and the importance of homogeneity throughout social media promotions. Further research supported this maneuver, which will be evident in the progress report feature below.

The Wellnest is a multi-dimensional resource for remedying mental and emotional health. Whether it is stress, anxiety, or difficulty focusing, The Wellnest is there for support. While wellness centers and initiatives are sprouting up in every city, the unique combination of wellness center, coffee shop, and in-house amenities is what The Wellnest brings. The coffee shop format came to fruition as we wanted the servicing to be as comprehensible and accessible as possible, which utilizing the familiar format of a coffee shop came to play. We believe that life is meant to be cherished and enjoyed, albeit the natural crests and troughs of life. It is with the assistance of awareness, skills, tools, and strategies that we manage the chaos of life, otherwise, we may be remiss with our health. As issues with mental and emotional health take the forefront in society today, we believe it is important to provide alternative support outside the constrains of pharmacology. The Wellnest staff will be holistically trained to offer emotional and mental support to themselves and employees. This support may look like offering strategies for coping or simply listening. Our products include a wellness based design space, mood and state specific customizable food and beverage menu, and in-house amenities such as float tanks, VR therapy programs, and bioneurfeedback (to start).

Brief Product Synopsis

The products offered at The Wellnest are the experiential servicing of the space, staff, and menu of food, beverages, and technology. As a bootstrap startup, our first cost efficient product will be VR therapy programs for adults and children. Technological advancements in EEG and brain imaging have advanced the healing and recovery for diagnosis such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injuries. As a company we will produce short 5-30 minute videos articulating desired mental states through narratives and imagery. These will be selected based on the discernment of staff and questionnaires and available for purchase at home. Our first commercial initiative will be a human-centered designed commercial coffee shop offering co-working areas, health conscious food and beverages, and in-house amenities and equipment (bioneurofeedback, VR rooms and experiences, microdosing, and float tanks). The space will be engineered to enhance the subjective well-being of customers, as well as, provoking curiosity and interest. Attached is a literature review on workspace environmental design for the purpose of enhancing subjective well-being of employees. Seating areas will be diverse and intended for collaborations, creative processing, individual experiences, and ergonomically structured. The menu will be curated with the intention of optimal human well-ness focusing in on anti-inflammatories, all natural, and locally sourced. Nutrition specific items for cognitive processing, emotions, and mental states will be scientifically formulated. All of these services and initiatives will eventually be available as independently contracted services for large corporations and institutions. The Wellnest’s foundation is based on promoting human strengths, education, and nourishment. Our goal is to become a global resource on campuses, corporate compounds, and online. We strive to become an integrative tool for the evolution of pharmaceuticals and the health industry.

Background Research

Market Research Methods and Data Analysis

As with any company or entity, it is important to have goals. The goals for ‘market research’ were to understand the potential customer archetypes, comparable companies, the wellness and health industry as a whole, and to test conceptually to such groupings. 

The customer analysis was conducted through online surveys and in-person interviews around campus and the town of Fort Collins, Colorado. The surveys are featured on the website under market research. From customer analysis and conducting an exercise of ‘brain dumping’, the company archetypes have been deduced to Workaholics, Fitness & Health Gurus, Retirees, Inquisitive Scientists, Stressed Students, Trauma Challenged, Spiritual Sages, and the Over-prescribed. Each archetype is unique in their functioning, marketability, servicing, and journey map. This is elaborated in the attached power point.

Methods of research consisted of surveys, interviews, online sifting, participation in the entrepreneurial institute’s workshops, and case studies of companies.  A major underpinning to the research is the proliferation of emotional and mental distress amongst the general public, but specifically within the younger Generation Y demongraphic, currently within high schools and attending univeristy. Another underpinning is the targeted demongraphic of upper middle class economic society who have the most capital to contribute.

A case study example of this Grand Junction’s mental health addition to their mandatory student health programs. With a national record high in student suicides, the students demanded emotional and mental health resources from the school faculty, to which the new mental health initiative was formulated. This is just one example of the mental health crisis currently underway. Speaking to a department head on campus, who has not provided consent on their name being used, further emphasized the status of mental health. They explained the globally heightened distress amongst current students in regards to issues of absenteeism, emotional therapy pets, turning in assignments, and class participation. These issues were expressed as difficulties managing the self-reliance required as a university student and adult. This is an imparative topic as this demographic can directly benefit from the Wellnest and its amenties. The Wellnest can also adjust according to this demographics problems.

 Online surveys expressed the generality of anxiety and stress. The surveys also exposed people’s awareness to the concept of mindfullness and experience with mindfulness. The interviews conducted with students on campus, at the recreational center, around town, and at local coffee shops were majortively supportive. All interviewees were not only excited about the concept of the Wellnest, they expressed a deep need for such existence and experience. I also received some critical feedback about presentation of the company and strategy in expansion, for example the necessity in keeping choices and information as simple as possible as they are rather dense in concept. Speaking to professors on campus was interdiscplinarily insightful and ranged from departments such as landscape architecture, positive psychology, clinical psychology, biology, design and merchandising, business, and communications. Not only were these fortuitous potential collaboratives, they were excellent market research on an older demographic who would equally benefit from the Wellnest.

As for industry research, a majority of the ‘all in one house’ concepts for health and wellness offerings were located in Los Angeles, California and New York City, New York. These companies were promoted as wellness centers offering amenities of acupuncture, massage, yoga, and conscious eating menus. A benchmark company and competition for the Wellnest is Bulletproof. Bulletproof’s main reservoir for income is from their highly regarded and monitored coffee, collagen protein, and supplement products. While Bulletproof’s headquarters is in Seattle, their ‘Bulletproof Lab’ is featured in Santa Monica as ‘the world’s first biohacking facility’. This facility utilizes equipment such as virtual float tanks, cyrotherapy, light therapy, Cold HIIT, 3d body scanning, and much more. On the Bulletproof website they feature items such as “Brilliant Brain Program”, and a point based system featured as,

“1 Bullet $50: We operate on a point based system, where points are called Bullets.  All of our services are either 1 or 2 Bullets to schedule. With this offer you get 1 Bullet added to your account. You can use that Bullets for the services listed below.” ( Bulletproof,  2017)

It is critical to study this company as it is the most comparable company found thus far. They also have podcast’s hosted by the found, Dave Asprey, ranging on topics of neuroscience, health and fitness, nutrition, biology, microbiology, psychology, technology, and spirituality.  The major difference is their target market. Historically their target market is an older demographic within the middle to upper middle class interested in topics of aging and hacking the body and brain according to such.

There is also the concept of ‘life camps’ such as Serenbe featured outside of Atlanta, GA. These ‘life camps’ operate as self-sustaining communities centered holistically in solace, nature, community, and moral integrity. The communities also fund individuals from interesting disciplines to come and stay with them such as poets, authors, and creative.

            Another comparable company concept is healing co-op centers such as Boulder’s Healing Hub where a laundry list of healing practitioners and services are available under one roof. The commercial space features a casual, family room style lobby and individual offices. A similar concept featured online is the Wellnicity where one can find a customizable vitamin product packages. At Carol Tuttle’s online Healing Center, she offers online memberships to her ‘healing sessions’ treating everything from relationship issues to anxiety and depression. Truthfully, there are a variety of interdisciplinary options out there heading towards being a mainstream trend and availability. Advertisements companies are evening gearing adds towards concepts of wellness, manifesting, and transcendence.

            Other industry related research was on events, conferences, and social programs. Events such as SXSW Wellness Expo in Austin, Texas and the Bulletproof conference are desirable for future attendance and as a research platforms on participating companies and presenters. There are also ‘bio-hacking’ events happening internationally. European countries such as the UK are actively pursuing initiatives called social prescribing where medical practitioners are promoting/prescribing social activities to clients. This information is advantageous to follow for promotional developments and paralleling initiatives for the Wellnest.

The last component of market research was within the context of the entrepreneurial institute. Here I attended the Venture Invest where we developed a company within 24-hours, Venture Validator where we met for four weeks conducting customer analysis and going through the design process, pitch workshops where we learned about the power of storytelling and creating a refined pitch, and rolling weekly meetings with mentors at the institute. Unaffiliated with the institute, yet another on-campus experiential component of market research, was the VR symposium where we were exposed to the potency and explosion of VR within the industries of mental health, architecture, design, and social media. This was enterprising, as the Wellnest will incorporate VR as a therapeutic device.

            Martket Research on environmental design, environmental psychology, and current workplace demands has simultaneously been conducted for another class where we are developing literature reviews. This information regarding key components of workplace satisfaction, workplace design, and positive affect will be utilized at the Wellnest. Companies such as Apple, Amazon, and Samsung have developed new workplace facilities using such research. Biophilia, for instance, is new major consideration for architects as they and everyone else, have become aware of the fundamental importance of being connected and around nature. Other aspects of lighting, color, ceiling heights, positioning, and much more all have specific relations to emotional and mental states.

Design Ideation & Tech Sketches

Concept Story

The goals are to develop promotional devices for the Wellnest. Although only one video as a concept story has been curated, customer archetypes have been developed that will play out as storytelling in further demonstrations. The major customer archetypes are Workaholics, Fitness & Health Gurus, Retirees, Inquisitive Scientists, Stressed Students, Trauma Challenged, Spiritual Sages, and the Over-prescribed. Each archetype will have specific terminology, marketing, and journey mapping experiences.  It is important here to practice the art of storytelling. The video featured on the website and during the presentation is a thought provoking video from The Wellnest. It is meant to bring about awareness to the viewer of their capacity to be influenced through the mediums of film, suggestion, direction, and sound. This video is just one example of our marketing strategy, but also a portion of the VR programs.

An additional recording will be created from the ‘ted-talk’ style presentation at the Fort Collins Startup Week. The concept story here emphasizes the epidemic of emotional and mental health distress and how to cope by harnessing subjective wellbeing either in the workplace, personal life, or as a group.  Lastly, concept stories through VR are definitely an initiative we are going pursue within the company. Curated for the development of specific emotions and mental states, the VR programs will be stories such as depictions of nature operating in accordance with guided meditations and positioning certain stimuli specific for operation of areas of the brain. These type of therapeutic programs are already underway and being utilized, however, are nave in their existence.

Website Development

The goal here was to develop a platform that operates as a prototype of the real experience that the Wellnest offers. Visceral movement and biophilic simplicity are the design concepts featured on the webpage. The webpage can be found at https://inthewellness.squarespace.com. The website design is minimal, organic, and uplifting. For the website to be useable and an active prototype, a first draft google sketchup of the store is featured, as well as, a more fluid format of services available.

Prototyping Process & Outcomes

The goal for prototyping is to have a somewhat concrete and tangible existence of your product. Since we are an experiential company this task was a bit daunting. The video clip provided serves as one prototype example conceptualizing the mission and purpose of The Wellnest, as well as, the potential format of the VR programs. The Google Sketchup and mood board for the store layout are additional prototypes for the commercial space. The literature review attached serves as a basis for the commercial space design for heightened states of subjective well-being of consumers. The algorithmically curated menu of food and beverages still needs to be developed and will require the assistance of an application or web developer.

Product Testing

            We have yet to perform product testing on the video and space. Once we have more formalized VR videos and concepts we can source research participants to asses the validity and reliability of our products. Partnering with the Mental Health Innovation program at the University of Denver will be ideal. 

Conclusions

Development of VR programs, customizable menu, and cost analysis are still needed. Once those are completed, beta testing can be conducted. For now, our purpose and mission as a company will continue to prevail and metamorphose. Partnership with Colorado State University resources, successful wellness entrepreneurs and wellness enthusiasts, and the local Fort Collins community will be essential in our group as a company.  

Reference

Bulletproof Labs. (2017). Retrieved from http://bulletprooflabs.com/