Jul 24, 2019

Creating Our Stola Products

Development for our Stola line started in 2016 and the brand category was officially launched in 2017. Nearly two years later, we created our Stola website and made our products available to the public on February 1^st, 2019.

Some of our Stola products are even about to become available in select JOANN® stores. But what exactly goes into making our Stola fashion tote bags and decorative storage bins? Read below to learn a little more about the development and design of Stola.

Developing Stola

When we talked about creating Stola one of the best parts was knowing that this was a line created by women for women; that was a big thing for this line. We wanted to make sure we took the needs people actually had and created a solution.

It was designed with a busy woman in mind to try to make her life easier. Even the term Stola was created with women in mind. “Sto” for storage and “la” as a feminine indicator.

Consumer insights were the real driving force behind making Stola. We wanted to make products that were more affordable and durable. We took the time to figure out the extras that people said would make their life easier.

We added things like interior and exterior pockets, longer handles, and created functional shapes and sizes based on consumer feedback. We interviewed people in person and asked them to interact with the product.

We asked them how they’d use it and what their life was like. We took four very different woman and had them review the products and say how they would use them.

Fashionable & Functional Products

Stola

All the bags are collapsible—when you need to take it somewhere, it’s easy to take with you and store. These products are easy to carry on-the-go because of their size and long handles. The multiple shapes and sizes of Stola are designed so that the bags can fit into each other as well.

This is a line that caters to people with smaller homes, people who travel more, and people who are always on-the-go. We needed to create something functional and also “front-stage proud”; that means if it’s out in the home or with you all the time, it looks fashionable while also being functional.

Our president, Janet, wanted a recognizable Stola icon. So, Kaitlyn, one of the designers, created the hummingbird logo. Kaitlyn has a personal connection to the hummingbird design, but she also felt the hummingbird symbolizes lightness, mobility, and independence. These three traits were front and center during the development of Stola.

The overlap between the function and how it looks is something that makes it so easy for us to market. The material was also a huge part of the development—it was the biggest part. We selected patterns that were contemporary and expressed longevity and individuality.

Selling Stola

We choose an e-commerce store for Stola because that is the way the world is going. People want the convenience of online shopping. More than half of consumers visit a retailer website with the intent to buy—digital brands are taking over.

We wanted to offer Stola on e-commerce because it’s a big opportunity to grow digitally. With Stola, we’re able to tailor to our consumer from start to finish. It’s light and collapsible, so it was the perfect item to go e-commerce and ship across the country.

Buy Stola

You can browse our available Stola products anytime on this website by clicking the Shop tab. Join the Stola family and see what our customer-driven products are all about.

Written and Published by Jessica – Writer at HMS Mfg. Co. for the Stola™ brand