Every step of the creative process has a touch of Adobe
Employees: 150+
HQ: Melbourne, Australia
Adobe Subscription: Creative Cloud for teams
Most used apps: Photoshop, Indesign, Illustrator, Acrobat
Good design can have a profound impact on our daily lives – how we connect, how we communicate, how we work and how we rest.
For handcrafted furniture and lighting company Jardan, design-thinking informs every step of the creation process and is underpinned with the belief that no machine can replace the human hand or the eye. “We’re most proud that we’ve been able to sustain a manufacturing design business in Australia. It’s wonderful to be able keep an eye on the quality and watch it manufactured right here,” says co-director Nick Garnham.
In operation since 1987, a growing team of over 150 designers, makers, engineers, and marketers are housed under the one roof and work together to evolve their ideas, solve design problems, create prototypes, and move collections through production.
“Committing to our own research, development and manufacturing has allowed us to be leaders in the industry in Australia, as well as commit to quality and sustainability,” says co-director Nick Garnham.
This is what gives every collection, every product, every post on social media a recognisably Jardan feel – well crafted, made for life, and uniquely Australian – and an ability to lead in a competitive industry.
“Learning new skills has been a rewarding aspect of growing the company,” says Garnham. “We challenge ourselves by working with new materials and stepping into new areas such as retail.”
Consistent design can provide the bedrock for a company expanding its comfort zone.
“Whether it’s designing an entire collection, or designing a quote, our commitment to detail means that we keep refining in order to deliver consistently,” says Garnham.
Such consistency is, in part, achieved through Adobe Creative Cloud for teams, adds Jardan’s marketing specialist, Lani Tyler-Baxter.
“When you think about all the moving parts it takes to develop, design and launch a collection, you realise every step has a touch of Adobe.”
A commitment to excellence across the entire process is imperative and a “way of life” for Jardan, explains Garnham.
“It’s incredibly powerful to have all these programs that can move across different platforms and allow us to do all these things in-house – it helps us to really grow our company, while being mindful of costs as well.”
Purchasing and IT Manager Alen Babic says that the centralised Admin Console of the Creative Cloud for teams also contributes to business productivity.
“It simplifies and allocates the licensing and gives us more control as required on daily tasks. Previously, if I needed to transfer the license between staff members it was very tedious. Now I just log into the portal and do the setup,” adds Babic.
“It gives us a more affordable use of the software since we can simply transfer the licenses as required.”
How Adobe improves the entire workflow
With research, design, manufacturing, and marketing all housed together, the creative team at Jardan is responsible for a wide-ranging design process, from developing entire collections and visual merchandising, through to web and content production.
Jardan also creates their own packaging for homewares collections in house, collaborating with local ceramic and glass artists and printing locally. “From design to printing, keeping everything local makes things happen and ensures control,” says Tyler-Baxter.
Furniture collections are launched annually with seasonal homeware collections, with a touch of Adobe in every step of the design process.
“You don’t realise how important it is until you map it all out – I personally don’t know what the alternative would be,” explains brand identity designer, Patrick Monti.
Internal documents have the same emphasis on quality and design as external documents, with a template used across the creative team to pitch ideas and develop concepts.
“There are a lot of different steps involved in the process and we are constantly using Adobe, we wouldn’t be able to function without it really,” adds says Tyler-Baxter.
With a variety of steps to the design process, the team share a behind the scenes look at the workflow and tools used.
Step 1: Mood boards – collections begin with a mood board driven by creative directors using InDesign and evolved through collaboration and team input.
Step 2: Design brief and samples – briefs are created with a template on InDesign using fonts and stock imagery from Creative Cloud for Teams. The design team then brings the collection to life with 3D printing and producing samples.
Step 3: Manufacturing – having control and proximity to the making of the collection is crucial. As a modern and lean manufacturer, the team is always sourcing new materials, finding solutions for waste and new efficiencies.
Step 4: Art direction – once a collection is finalised, the design team will create a mood board for a shoot concept and scout for locations, source styling props, talent, and develop various angles and imagery further developed and edited using Photoshop.
Step 5: Collection branding and marketing – each collection has its own sub-brand concept developed in Illustrator and InDesign. Acrobat Pro is used across various marketing assets including EDMs, press releases, product PDFs and shop window vinyls.
Step 6: Digital content – maintaining engagement online is increasingly competitive, so the team is always developing new approaches, colour palettes, experimenting with fonts and ensuring their high-quality collections are matched with equally well-styled imagery, web design and social media content.
Step 7: In-store marketing and visual merchandising – immense effort is put into the design and layout of the showrooms. The team works with a local printer to create colleterial such as postcards, product descriptions and a custom 130-page magazine The Good Life can be found in store. Packaging for homeware collections are also created in house, and strong attention to detail is paid to product tags and labels.
Step 8: Retail sales – quality customer service also connects to good design, with the sales team taking customers through the collection on surface screens utilising Acrobat to display a range of fabrics options and modular configurations of the range. Even a brief sales document on a sofa range is as well thought-through and as engaging as possible.
Communication, collaboration and creativity
To ensure quality across all steps of the design process, quality communication is a paramount.
Various teams come together in meetings to check in, learn and ensure everyone is on the same page – but there is an art to an effective meeting. “Each team is only allowed two minutes to explain what they are working on, what challenges they are facing, and upcoming projects” explains Tyler-Baxter. “It’s often really fascinating to hear the different projects people are working on that are all part of the same goal.”
In a fast-paced environment, Adobe also enables the teams to collaborate effectively during meetings and during the design process. “The whole design and marketing team is proficient with Adobe, so we can gather around the computer and tweak things as we go.”
Visuals are also key to communication, with new photoshoots, mood boards, website layouts all displayed on pinboard in the office. “If you come to the meeting with something on the board, everyone is really engaged and can provide instant feedback,” says Tyler-Baxter.
Such open communication, visual inspiration and real-time feedback can also be a great counter to creative block, adds Monti.
“If we’re struggling with a concept or idea, it can be so helpful to bring someone else in from another team and bounce ideas – it’s good to get outside the bubble.
For Jardan, good design stems from good teamwork. “You have to keep moving together and look for inspiration – it’s crucial to share ideas instead of keeping them to yourself,” concludes Monti.
Writing by Madeleine Dore
Photography by James Geer
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