Bhavika Shah's profilePriscila Mendoza's profile

HCC: developing a business and branding plan

Multiple Owners
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OVERVIEW: 
Alarmed by trends in commercial food production, the Ferguson family transformed their lives by creating a farm dedicated to sustainable and humane agricultural practices. This focus quickly attracted the attention of friends, neighbors and the communities who shared the Fergusons’ concerns about the impact of grain-fed meat on animals, the environment, and people. Hunter Cattle Co. continues to grow by partnering with local restaurants and businesses to promote grass-fed beef, free-range chicken and eggs, pastured pork, and other products to the local community.

Hunter Cattle Company approached the design management team for a 10-week long project on how to sustain and increase their revenue streams. As the team progressed through the project, design brief shifted to building Hunter Cattle Co. into a thought leader of sustainable agriculture. The final deliverables addressed branding and graphics, business and strategy, event planning and execution, and recommendations for future endeavors. 
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
RESEARCH TEAMS:
The team divided into four research groups to better understand the sustainable farming industry: The Farm Team, the Communications Team, the External Team, and the Education Team.

The Farm Team looked into how Hunter Cattle Co. functions as a company: the services they offer, their organizational management, the product cycle including processes for inventory and distribution of their products, etc.

The Communications Team looked at Hunter Cattle Co.'s branding and presence within south Georgia including their advertising and marketing plans. 

The External Team looked at any external partners and competitors within Hunter Cattle Co.'s market of south Georgia and where potential partnerships or threats lie.

Finally, the Education Team looked at the rules and regulations for being a sustainable farm and the various terms used within that market. 
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
The team and the Hunter Cattle Co. Family
DEVELOPMENT TEAMS:
After the initial research including several workshops with the family and on-sight farm visits, the class divided into new teams: Branding, Business, Events, and Future Recommendations.

These new teams provided final deliverables that redefined Hunter Cattle Company's future as a leader in sustainable agriculture. Below are a few examples of the final deliverables offered to the farm. 
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
BUSINESS:
The business handbook is an adaptation on a traditional business plan. It provides a foundation for developing a business plan tailored for Hunter Cattle Company. The handbook is formatted to be informative, aesthetically pleasing, and flexible, so that content can be adapted, changed, or added to according to need.

To read the full handbook, please click here: http://issuu.com/bhavikashah/docs/hccdeliverable_book_businesshandboo
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
BRANDING:
The branding handbook evaluates and defines Hunter Cattle Co. as a brand by breaking down the brand into simple building blocks. These components can be understood separately, but come together to form a complete picture of the company since branding is the sum of all interactions with a potential customer.

To learn more about the branding strategies, please click here: http://issuu.com/bhavikashah/docs/hcc_brand_generalbranding13
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
EVENTS:
The events guidebook applies the business and branding strategies into action items for Hunter Cattle Co. Included in the book are signage examples, recommended logo usage, tour maps and explanations, and farmer's market setup recommendations. 
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
FUTURE RECOMMENDATIONS:
The goal of working with Hunter Cattle Co. was to analyze and evaluate Hunter Cattle's internal processes and public-facing presence. This analysis was executed to create recommendations for Hunter Cattle Co. to develop a growth strategy that aligns with organizational objectives. 
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
VALUE FOR CLIENT:
This was one of the most successful projects for the design management department. The team revolutionized Hunter Cattle Company's business/branding/future plans and they in turn realized the value of design. By giving the tools and methods to move their business forward, the Hunter Cattle Company has seen financial success since the project's completion. 
design thinking Service design Business Strategy Design Management
THE TEAM:
Verena Paepcke-Hjeltness (Professor), Bhavika Shah, Priscila Mendoza, Michael Denman, Diane Seaver, Mariana Ortiz Reyes, Lauren Peters, Atthaves Borriraklert, Laura Campos, Phillip Evans, Alexandra Jackson, Liu Xin, Carol Lora, JaKenaa Martin, Sun Tianjie, Nathan Sundberg, You Wang, Haoting Zhang

MY CONTRIBUTIONS:
Co-Design/Project Manager; Farm Team Lead including interviewing, workshop facilitating, and strategizing and scheduling; 1 of 2 Client Liason; Business Handbook Lead; Writer/Editor; Graphics Contributor. 

HCC: developing a business and branding plan
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Bhavika Shah's profilePriscila Mendoza's profile
Multiple Owners

Owners

Bhavika Shah's profile
Austin, TX, USA
Priscila Mendoza's profile
Monterrey, Mexico

HCC: developing a business and branding plan

Hunter Cattle Company approached the design management team for a 10-week long project on how to sustain and increase their revenue streams. As t Read More

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