A Change of Scenery

An administrative assistant walks into a meeting room and says, “I don’t mean to interrupt your meeting, but the supplier is here to show you the new material samples”.

A group of colleagues from a clothing manufacturer have been in a meeting to discuss the fall catalog. After reviewing a few pictures showcasing the anticipated collection of items, the team supervisor says, “I like the color theme of burgundy, forest green, and navy, but together with the animal prints, it doesn’t look very original.”

One of the colleagues responds, “The cut of the clothes reflects the latest trends.”

The team supervisors says, “I am not sure if the average consumer will notice the difference.”

At that point, the administrative assistant walked into the room to announce the meeting. The team supervisor said, “I forgot all about it. We better go. We can finish discussing the fall catalog after the meeting.”

The colleagues leave the conference room and go into a larger meeting room to meet with the supplier. After a round of introductions, the lead speaker places two bouquets of roses on the conference table and says, “Which one do you think is real?”

After a few moments, one of the colleagues says, “They look the same. You can’t tell the difference.”

The lead speaker says, “One of them is made with synthetic materials. Which one do you think it is?”

Another colleague says, “The one on the right.”

Another colleague says, “I agree. The one on the right looks more real.”

The supplier says, “I am happy to say you are both wrong. The one on the left is real and the one on the right is made with synthetic materials.”

A few colleagues get up from their chairs to walk up to the front of the conference room to take a closer look.

One of the colleagues says, “It’s hard to believe it is made with synthetic materials. It looks very real and when you touch the petals, they are soft to the touch.”

After a few minutes of looking closely at the two bouquets, the colleagues return to their seats. The lead speaker from the supplier takes out another two bouquets of flowers. This time the bouquets reflect an assortment of flowers. After placing them on top of the table, the lead speaker says, “Which one do you think is real?”

One of the colleagues says, “I think the one on the left is the real one, but I am probably wrong so I will say the one on the right side.”

The speaker from the supplier picks up the two bouquets and walks over to the colleague, and says, “Smell them and see if it makes a difference.”

The colleague sniffs at each of them and says, “I don’t notice a difference. They smell the same.”

The speaker from the supplier says, “Do you still think the one on the right is the real one?”

The colleague says, “I’m not sure. They look and smell the same.”

The lead speaker from the supplier says, “Your initial response was correct. The one on the right side is the real one.”

After a few minutes of passing around the bouquets so everyone has a chance to look at them, the lead speaker says, “The point of the demonstration is to show that we have been working with different materials and designing them to look as real as the original.”

The lead speaker continues, “Today, we would like to show you a variety of samples that we have developed. They have been designed to look like the original materials, but they are made with synthetic materials to help minimize costs.”

The lead speaker begins handing out an assortment of materials. As each material is placed on the conference table, the lead speaker describes how it was made and the material it is intended to reflect.

The group of colleagues spend a couple of hours looking at the different samples, asking questions about how they were made, and how they compare to the original materials in terms of quality and durability. They are very excited about the possibilities about a few of the samples and end the meeting with discussions about providing a few reams so their designers can make a few clothing samples.

The group of colleagues return to their conference room. The meeting with the supplier inspired them as it helped them see new possibilities. One of the colleagues says, “I loved that wool crepe material, and it felt less scratchy than ours.”

After they take their seats around the conference table, another colleague says, “After looking at all those bouquets of flowers, our designs for the fall collection seem dark and drab.”

Another colleague says, “That’s what happens after you look at flower arrangements. They all look so pretty and lively. Unfortunately, floral themes and colors are more appropriate for the spring and summer months. We need to do something different for fall.”

Another colleague says, “Let’s brainstorm for a few minutes.” The colleague walks up to the front of the conference room and approaches the white board. The colleague continues, “What do you think of when you think of fall?”

One colleague says, “Cooler temperatures.”

Another colleague says, “Leaves falling to the ground.”

Another colleague says, “Back to school time.”

Another colleague says, “Pumpkins.”

The colleague at the white board writes down each response using a dry erase marker. After writing down a few more responses, the colleague steps back and looks at all the responses. The colleague then circles the “Leaves falling to the ground” response and says, “When you think of leaving falling to the ground, what comes to mind?”

One colleague says, “The leaves fall and crumble.”

Another colleague says, “The leaves turn colors.”

Another colleague says, “Before they fall, the colors are bright and vivid.”

Another colleague says, “They turn all sorts of colors. Some have multiple colors, some are speckled, some are gold.”

Another colleague says, “That’s it”. The colleague gets up from the conference table and goes to one of the flip charts in the room and begins drawing a blouse with a nature motif with small leaves and various accents using different color markers. After a few minutes, the colleague steps away and says, “What do you think?”

One of the colleagues says, “I like it. The use of gold helps brighten up our color theme.”

Another colleague says, “Pairing that blouse with a brown skirt and boots screams fall.”

The colleagues spend the next hour discussing and drawing revisions for the fall collection. They agree to meet the following week with updated pictures to review for the catalog. The colleagues leave the meeting worn out in a positive way as they feel it was worth the effort. They know the redesigned catalog to reflect the new designs will be received more favorably.

While at the time, the meeting interruption seemed inconvenient, it provided the necessary inspiration to help them improve the catalog. They just needed a change in scenery.