Role: User research & business plan lead, industrial, junior engineering & brand design, seed quilt development, content strategy | Team of 3 | Timeline: September 2018-May 2019
WeeVeg is a small-scale household agriculture product for microgreens that uses an automated, vertical watering system and specially designed ‘seed pads’ to sprout a variety of nutritious greens on any wall.
Curiosity
The Problem:
Although most American adults reports that they believe they are eating healthy, a recent study by the CDC finds that around 91% of Americans are not getting the recommended amount of vegetable nutrition in their diets.
Insights:
Even people that have access to fresh food report that it costs more than they want to pay on a regular basis
Adults with demanding lifestyles opt for faster, more immediate meals when in a bind, finding themselves presented with options that are neither nutrient rich nor fresh
Many people don’t feel confident that they really know what their body needs in terms of nutrition
Developing solutions:
How can we give people ready access to the right kind of nutrition at any time? After many interviews with a user group we labelled ‘health nuts',’ those people who adhere to very strict, vegetable based diets and are the first to experiment with new food trends, we started to explore the practice of ‘micro agriculture,’ or growing food in small quantities for individual consumption in the home. Our research led us to the develop a small-scale, vertical growing solution harnessing the power of micro greens.
Creativity
Ideation:
Process Photos + Early Prototypes:
Impact
The Business Case:
Market for launch: ~300,000 Americans between the ages of 21 and 60
Sales Model:
Year 1-3: Online sales and subscriptions (3 tiered subscription model)
Year 3 onward: Explore retail options at top home goods stores
Advertising and brand development through social media and online presence that encourages users to share recipes and experiences cooking with microgreens
Competitive products:
Ikea Vaxer
Aerogarden
Click & Grow
Aggressively Organic
