Ippolito Fleitz Group – Identity Architects

Sleepyhead (DockATot) makes products for babies and infants with a sustainable, non-hazardous materials concept. With its certified eco-friendly materials, Sleepyhead (DockATot) hits a nerve with anxious parents. And with its large collection of attractive covers, Sleepyhead (DockATot) also wins the hearts of design-loving mothers and fathers. Sleepyhead (DockATot) commissioned us to develop a corporate architecture for the brand. Like the product itself, our solution carefully realises a guiding principle: we have created a surreal, fairy-tale world, a place for new discoveries and new experiences, which is as an allegory for the magical moments parents experience with their little princes and princesses. The scenery is laser-cut from white, corrugated cardboard. The different layers and the corrugated structure revealed by the cut edges give the walls a spatial depth. The concept functions both as an exhibition stand and as a shop-in-shop, and has already been implemented for a pop-up store in London’s Harrods department store, as well as in multiple exhibition stands.

On the US market, the brand operates under the name DockATot. For the JPMA Baby Show in Washington, one of the largest spectator trade fairs for baby products in North America, we took the corporate architecture one step further. We produced an entire building made from corrugated cardboard in the shape of a historic greenhouse. A wooden structure was built to support the delicate vaulted ceiling construction. Step inside and you enter an opulent plant world made from cardboard. The greenhouse, symbolising the care and devotion a gardener displays towards his plants, becomes a metaphor for the love parents show towards their children. The garden scenery is complemented by rattan furniture. The communicative heart of the stand, however, is a large, round table beneath a grand chandelier. The building-like character of the stand makes it even clearer that you are stepping into an entirely parallel world. The unusual form and materiality provoke curiosity and the promise that the stand will surprise its visitors.

Our new corporate architecture for Sleepyhead (DockATot) shows how even a small brand can be successful by building on a consistent brand image. Just like the product itself, the corporate architecture follows a central idea and conveys the spirit of the brand in a surprising and creative manner across the space. Moreover, the individual modules can be adapted to different-sized areas and differing usage requirements.