Gabriella Rios - 2026 Product Launch: Toddler Pretend & Play Market

About the Project

Project Brief

Create new image assets for use across digital and print collateral, showcasing the new Toddler Pretend & Play Market

• Product features, scale & quality should be easily understood

• Product function for children's use is clear

• Display how the product can be utilized in a classroom environment

Role

Art Director/Project Manager

Partners

Design, RD&D, Merchandising, Marketing, Editorial, Photography, Color & Web Content

The Design Process

Designing is an iterative process done in partnership with other creatives, cross-functional partners, and leadership. Below is an illustrated look at how I've crafted my own process to ensure I create successful design systems and effective design solutions.

Research, Concept Exploration & Initial Sketches

Facts - Determined through research with RD&D & Merchandising:

• The Toddler Pretend & Play Market is a furniture piece under the category of Dramatic Play

• The target age range for this product is 12-36 months, and we'd like to represent the youngest learners

• It is designed with an accessory item - 3 baskets

• It pairs with existing Lakeshore dramatic play items - food props

Objectives - Informed by the facts above:

• I need to develop a 12-24 month old classroom, prioritizing a Dramatic Play area to feature this new product within; dramatic play will be primary focus with other classroom areas depicted in background

• I need to cast 12-14 month old models to best represent the safety of this product for our youngest learners

• I need to show the product propped with its accessory item sold separately, as well as existing dramatic play props such as our food and grocery sets, to highlight the best use-case scenario and encourage further product sales

Initial sketch for proof of concept

On-set photo exploration: Show entire product with possibly less emotional connection with models; determine background product should be adjusted from sketch to better fit the crop and need for logo lockup

On-set photo exploration: In-between crop capturing model emotion and most of product

On-set photo exploration: Tight crop of product focusing on model emotion

Approved concept to move into final photography - determined a teacher would not be shown in the image

The Final Solutions

Website PDP Solutions

Item is sold on both the regular e-commerce site for educator and parent viewing, as well as on the targeted furniture side for educators and classroom designers.

Lakeshore Legacy E-Commerce Site

• Site is more flexible, appealing to B2B and B2C buyers

• The main image is meant to depict entire product accurately and can contain models for scale as well as propping to show full function

• Additional images are included on PDPs for items with extra features not able to be captured in the main image alone, or for lifestyle imagery, etc. These additional images also often contain captions explaining the product feature shown more directly than the descriptive copy

Lakeshore Furniture E-Commerce Site

• Site is more technical, appealing directly to those shopping for classroom furniture like B2B buyers

• Each product has 2 views: 3/4 angle and front facing of product only

• For a product like this one with an accessory sold, the baskets, additional images at both views are also shown

Visit on LakeshoreLearning.com

Visit on LakeshoreLearning.com/furniture

2026 Infant & Toddler Environments catalog & Early Childhood catalog Solutions

As we introduce new products, our cross-functional partners in RD&D, Marketing, and Merchandising work with Design to determine which products would be ideal to feature on catalog covers, homepages, and in other customer-facing and internal collateral.

This Toddler Pretend & Play Market was originally selected to be on the front cover of our 2026 Infant & Toddler catalog, as seen in the initial sketches above.

• Designed initial concept sketch for approval

• Developed the product pull list for all items needed and built out the classroom space

• Directed test photography to get the next step of approval

• Specified desired model representation and worked with the Model Coordinator to cast final models

Then, Leadership determined this item would be best shown in the Inside Front Cover of the Early Childhood catalog, which would be printed and out to customers first.

• The original sketch was utilized to help another Art Director complete their shot

• The original idea was still built out to full execution and made available to other creative teams for use in alternative collateral

Bottom left image from EC 2026 Early Childhood catalog inside front cover developed using initial research, concept design, and product specifications (Note: Page design and other photography completed by a different Art Director)

Lifestyle image featuring 12 month old models playing together with the product in a 12-24 Month age range classroom arrangement by Lakeshore

Additional Solutions

The PDP images are often adapted for other company uses, such as below.

Product Specification Sheet utilizing imagery directed and created as part of initial images launch

Note: Image assets are property of Lakeshore Learning Materials.