Cardboard Furniture and Displays in Action! Archives

Posted on October 31, 2014November 6, 2020 by WTPartners

Nawi Kids and the Epic Cardboard Tradeshow Booth

Nawi Kids Tradeshow Booth Flatgoods Grand Rapids Mi

Here’s how Nas from Nawi Kids got “the coolest booth at the show.”

Nas ordered some furniture and a big backdrop for the ENK Children’s Club tradeshow in New York City on Oct. 19-21, 2014.

FG: Hi Nas! Thanks for chatting with me. For starters, tell us a little bit about yourself. What is Nawi Kids?

Nas: Nawi Kids is a line of kids gifts (plush toys, blankies, etc) based on our dinosaur characters: Coco, Ryder, and Frankie – more coming soon!

Inspired by one little girl’s love of dinosaurs, and her parents frustrating search for cute dinosaurs that spoke to girls, Nawi Kids was born in 2013. All our products are made in USA, with sustainability in mind, and packaged in reusable and re-sealable pouches.

cardboard-tradeshow-booth — Setup in progress! 3 Basset Stools, 1 Cobb Square Table, and 1 Jens Big Backdrop

FG: What led you to Flatgoods and to cardboard furniture in general? Sustainability? Uniqueness? Affordability?

Nas: Because we make all our products with sustainability in mind, when looking to furnish our trade show space, it was important for us to find something reusable, easy to move, but cool! When I saw that I could customize everything, I knew Flatgoods would be perfect.

FG: Could you talk about your experience with Flatgoods–as a company and the products themselves? Here are some ratings to get you started:

Nas: Pricing: Poor–1 2 3 4 5–Great

Shipping Costs: Poor–1 2 3 4 5–Great

Assembly: Difficult–1 2 3 4 5–Easy

Website: Confusing–1 2 3 4 5–Easy to use

Overall Experience: Poor–1 2 3 4 5–Great

Other Comments: My experience was great overall, especially with you, Tina. Thank you so much for keeping everything on time, working on the shipping costs, and being so quick to respond.

FG: What did people think of your booth at the tradeshow?

Nas: The response was overwhelmingly positive. People were intrigued, and I can say that we had the coolest booth at the show.

FG: Do you plan to re-use your items?

Nas: Yes, we have stored everything and plan on using for several more shows in New York.

FG: Okay, last question! Would you recommend Flatgoods to a friend? Why/why not?

Nas: Yes! Absolutely. I had a great experience and the furniture was everything I wanted it to be.

FG: Thank you so much, Nas. It’s been a pleasure working with you!

Ya hear that, folks! Coolest booth at the show!

Flatgoods tradeshow booths pack a visual punch, and are much more affordable than competitors. Plus, they’re recyclable! If you or someone you know is doing a tradeshow soon, send them our way.

Cardboard-Furniture-Cobb-Square-Table — Cobb Square Table, starting at $29

Cardboard Furniture: Basset Stool — Basset Stool, starting at $25

Products depicted here were the Cobb Square Table (starting at $29), Bassett Stool (starting at $25), Jens Big Backdrop (email [email protected] for custom pricing).

Posted on June 27, 2014November 6, 2020 by WTPartners

A Cut Above The Rest: Designing With Flatgoods

Designing With Flatgoods Grand Rapids Mi
Deksia, a brand strategy firm based in Grand Rapids, was tasked with developing a tradeshow booth for one of their clients, Chop. With the budget provided, creative director Josh Ryther and senior designer Jeremiah Elbel would normally have been limited in their production options for the tree service company. Fortunately, Flatgoods’ low-cost, high quality service allowed them to achieve their goals, and then some.

“We wouldn’t have been able to do anything for the same price (somewhere else). It would have cost three times as much to do,” Ryther said. “With Flatgoods, we were able to design a fully immersive experience that subtly changes your sense of place, which is really hard to do in a 10 x 10 booth. It gave us the opportunity to really draw attention to the brand.”

A three-panel booth was designed, with each panel featuring an education point relating to Chop’s services. “We designed it with Flatgoods in mind. We hadn’t really designed much with them, so we had to devise the structure. But we knew Flatgoods was capable of building anything we could imagine,” Ryther said.

With the low cost of production, Deksia realized they’d have money left over to make something special. “We decided to create a table to go in the center of the booth,” explains Elbel. “We made it bright red, which complimented the whiteness in the backdrop. It really helped create an atmosphere.”

Both Deksia and Chop were extremely pleased with the final product.

“Not only was the solution cost effective, but the actual product itself connected with the values of the company,” Elbel said, referring to Flatgoods’ premium, sustainable cardboard material.

“I think a booth of this caliber builds trust with consumers when they see it,” Ryther said. “It’s extremely professional and extremely forward thinking. It makes an impression, and it wouldn’t have been possible without Flatgoods.

Posted on June 18, 2014November 6, 2020 by WTPartners

Works of Art, in No Time Flat.

Flatgoods customizable furniture used in student art fundraiser

Products made by Flatgoods, a Deksia client that creates eco-friendly, affordable, and completely customizable cardboard furniture, were showcased last weekend at an event benefiting art education for local youth.

DEKflatgoods

HURRAH!, an annual fundraiser hosted by the East Grand Rapids Schools Foundation and Alumni Association, was held Saturday, March 22 at the Urban Institute Of Contemporary Art (UICA) in downtown Grand Rapids. The event included food, a cash bar, live music, and a raffle, with proceeds going toward furthering the arts within the East Grand Rapids school district.

Holly Lampen, a middle school art teacher for the district, was introduced to Flatgoods while working with founder James Mikrut’s other company, ICON Sign. The school received a grant from the East Grand Rapids Schools Foundation to design twelve giant flags for its campus; while developing the flags with Mikrut, Lampen was shown his work with Flatgoods.

“It seemed like a really cool fit for a student artwork auction, where the kids could design the chairs, and we could use them to raise some money,” Lampen said.

Lampen utilized grant money from the Foundation to purchase six blank white chairs and four blank white stools from Flatgoods to use for the HURRAH! event. Students from Lampen’s art class drew on one of the chairs, using the blank canvas to create a unique art piece.

“We have three elementary buildings, one middle school, and one high school, and each building received a chair to decorate. We also have a couple extra chairs that were printed with sponsor names,” Lampen said.

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The student-designed Flatgoods furniture was among the raffle prizes auctioned off at this year’s HURRAH! event. The money raised from these pieces will be used to purchase new art supplies and equipment, as well as to bring in artists to work with East Grand Rapids youth.

“(The students) loved it. They thought it was a really different project from ones we’ve done before. They all wanted them for their bedrooms,” Lampen said. “They’re like ‘oh my gosh, where can I get one of these?’”

Flatgoods currently offers kids chairs, cubbies, end tables, square tables, adult chairs, coffee tables and more in natural stock, white stock, or with a printed design. To purchase a Flatgoods custom furniture display piece for your home or business, head over to the company’s Kickstarter page to pledge.

“It’s such a cool product,” Lampen said. “I’m excited about it. I want some in our classrooms.”