Rachel Hodrick
Design manager but my team’s favorite supporting character.
FFL Re-brand to Target Premium Clients
A 30-year-old firearms FFL wanted to reposition itself toward a premium market and create a clear separation between its auction business and core brand identity. I served as brand designer from initial research through launch and product owner of the new website.
Outcomes
- Received first lead from tradeshow in 4 years 3 months after launch (a premium prospect with a $300K valuation)
- New website showed up in AI search and brought in leads within 2 months of brand launch
- Increased referral traffic from main site to new site month-over month
I facilitated collaborative sessions with company owners, department heads, developers, and marketing stakeholders, asking targeted questions to establish objectives, target audience, and success criteria. I led competitor brand research to ensure the new identity was competitive, successfully differentiated the new division, and remained credible to its existing customer base. I translated that research and collaborative sessions into a comprehensive brand identity system including logos, typography, color, photography, videography and brand voice. The development followed agile methodology and the resulting brand was documented in a style guide that established standards across all customer-facing touchpoints for digital, print, and presentation applications.
I led the pitch to create a new client-facing website for the brand and served as product owner for the marketing team — utilizing Jira, Figma, SharePoint, and Lucidchart to manage UX and UI handoff to web developers. To launch the site and the brand, I designed a series of sales enablement materials and trade show assets and directed multiple photo and video productions for the launch.
Product Design and Marketing to Target Premium International Retailers
An owner-operator DTC accessories brand wanted to acquire premium international stockists. I served as both product designer and as social media marketing manager.
Outcomes
- Secured placement in 3 international retail doors: Kith Paris, Kith Tokyo, Atmos Tokyo, Kith New York, Atmos New York;
- Brand invited to and attended New York Fashion Week in 2023
I conducted and presented analysis of competitor brands and the product line of target stockists. With the brand owner, we identified the precise aesthetic and positioning signals to resonate with the target retail partners. I designed a line of small leather goods to support the brand's positioning and developed a catalog of aspirational product photography and social media content that elevated perceived brand value, creating the visual proof of concept that outreach to international buyers demanded.
The strategy delivered repeat placements with KITH (Paris, Tokyo, New York) and Atmos (New York, Tokyo) and an invitation to New York fashion week Spring/Summer 2023.
Trade Manual Re-Design to Increase Training Class Signups
An industry-leading vegetation management company wanted to redesign their training manual for the first time in 10 years to increase training class enrollment. I served as project manager and graphic designer.
Outcomes
- Sales increased after launch
- With first week of sales, paid for the development and publishing of the initial 500 manuals
In managing this project, I reviewed the previous black and white manual and the newly written copy to develop a production plan. I identified hundreds of technical infographics to design and re-design, applying the company’s brand colors and tone for the first time since the manual was published. I developed an 8 month production timeline over which I designed and produced over 250 colorized technical diagrams and a proprietary illustration library for future manuals and courses. Throughout the project, I facilitated regular review sessions with marketing stakeholders, classroom trainers, and practicing arborists to ensure the graphics were both accurate and useful until the next re-design. I also proofed samples from printing vendors, making minute adjustments to develop new signature covers for the manuals and handbooks.
About
I’m black Korean-Cuban-American woman and the eldest of 4 sisters. My multi-cultural heritage fuels my love of for learning people and I highly value family and community. I love to cook and spend time with the kids in my community. I’ve found a lot of joy being the supporting character in others’ stories and find traveling to be a great way to do it more often.My ProcessBefore I open my umpteenth sketchbook, I begin every project with collaborative research and discovery. I’ve often found that a lack of clarity is usually the problem rather than an abundance of complexity. As a result, I’m undaunted by large problems and find my greatest impact is in systemic opportunities.
I lead collaboratively and build trust through relationships rather than authority. My teams and projects are highly goal-oriented and I create environments in which productive and respectful critical thinking creates work we’re all proud of.
I’m a person of action and adapt quickly. I present to executive stakeholders, go to set to art direct, and spend hours refining typographic minutiae. Years of project management and organizational discipline let me move between multiple projects and contexts without getting lost.
Lastly, I seek results. I ask for feedback, from my team and from the market. I like cool stuff, but I love useful stuff.
Thanks for taking an interest in me and my work. If you’d like to get to know me better, send me an email to rachel123christian@gmail.com or send me a message on LinkedIn.