Apparel & Merchandise
Zamboni Apparel Concept Sprint
A 48-hour apparel concept sprint that helped rebuild client confidence with Zamboni and led to later Zamboni x Peanuts merchandise work.
- Apparel Concepts
- Licensed Merchandise
- Client Rescue
- Role
- Senior Graphic Designer
- Client
- Zamboni Company, via BDA
- Year
- 2024
- Timeline
- 48-hour sprint (2024), followed by later Zamboni x Peanuts work
- Deliverables
- 24 final apparel concepts, Broader concept exploration, Animated presentation deck, Product mockups, Follow-up Zamboni x Peanuts concepts
- Tools
- Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop, PowerPoint
Challenge
Zamboni was unhappy with the apparel direction they had been seeing, and BDA needed to rebuild confidence quickly. The work needed to show better youth and teen apparel thinking, not just more shirt graphics.
Approach
I created a wide range of concepts, narrowed the strongest directions with leadership, and built a polished animated presentation that helped the client review the work clearly. The sprint balanced trend research, brand fit, production awareness, and fast execution.
The account needed momentum.
This project started as a client rescue sprint. Zamboni had been unhappy with the apparel concepts they were seeing, and BDA needed to rebuild confidence quickly. I was asked directly by senior leadership to create a large set of new apparel directions and package them into a client-ready presentation within 48 hours. The focus was youth and teen apparel, but the work needed to do more than look young. It had to feel trend-aware, brand-appropriate, commercially realistic, and flexible enough to support future collections.
Built for youth and teen appeal.
The concepts explored several visual lanes: retro sport graphics, playful speed and ice references, all-over Zamboni patterns, technical machine illustration, trend-driven typography, bold hoodie systems, and simpler graphic treatments that could scale across price points and product types.
The presentation had to sell the thinking.
Because the work was being used to regain client confidence, the presentation mattered almost as much as the concepts. I built the deck to feel polished, energetic, and intentional, using animation and sequencing to make the work feel like a cohesive creative proposal rather than a rushed batch of options.
The sprint reopened the door. Peanuts followed.
The original sprint helped rebuild confidence and gave the account team a stronger creative direction to bring back to the client. Later, when Zamboni partnered with Peanuts, the client requested that Nate work on the concept exploration. That follow-up turned the sprint from a rescue effort into the start of a larger creative relationship.
From follow-up concepts to public launch
The Peanuts follow-up moved the work from internal concept exploration into public-facing merchandise and store presentation.
What made the work effective.
A quick read on why the sprint landed with the client.
Speed with range
The sprint gave the client a lot to react to without making the work feel scattered.
Youth-first direction
The concepts moved away from generic merchandise and toward apparel kids and teens might actually wear.
Presentation mattered
The animated deck helped the work feel organized, polished, and ready for client discussion.
Flexible visual routes
The concepts gave Zamboni multiple ways to extend the brand across apparel, patterns, and custom products.
What I owned
- Created 24 final apparel concepts in under 48 hours
- Explored close to 50 directions before narrowing the presentation
- Designed youth and teen-focused graphics across tees, hoodies, and custom garments
- Built the client-facing animated PowerPoint deck
- Helped extend the work into later Zamboni x Peanuts concept exploration
Why it mattered
The work gave the account team a stronger creative direction at a moment when the client relationship needed momentum. It helped shift the conversation from dissatisfaction to renewed confidence in what the team could create.
Impact
- Helped rebuild client confidence during a high-pressure account moment
- Several concepts moved forward into ordered designs
- Zamboni later requested Nate specifically for Zamboni x Peanuts concept work
- The later Zamboni x Peanuts collection launched publicly through the official Zamboni store