Let's Focus On Our Focus Group

Hello HAPPY people!

Focus groups are such an important part of bringing new products to market.  We get so many ideas from our customers, retailers and employees that it can be difficult to determine and focus on the items that make the most sense for our customers and the Jon Hart brand. Earlier this year we turned to Instagram to recruit our focus group and ended up with 12 witty women that love and appreciate their handcrafted, made in America, personalized Jon Hart items.

We had a lot to bounce off of them in order to figure out what was the best fit for our current portfolio based on trends and frequent requests.

One of the big trends right now is clear handbags and totes.  It’s difficult to go to a school event, stadium or venue that doesn’t have a clear bag policy and we all have to figure out how we can be compliant without letting the new rules cramp our style. We recently launched a new clear tote bag called the Tourney tote which is a fan favorite so with this group we turned our attention to various crossbody bags in clear.  Several of the attendees owned our Clear Becky, the best clear crossbody bag around, and had a hard time imagining wanting anything else.  With the exception of one truly innovative and versatile bag (coming soon!), none of the other new clear bags were a must have for these ladies.  They did have plenty of input on how they’d like to see one of the bags reimagined into a traditional coated canvas bag.  We redesigned it according to their feedback and boy are they right- it’s perfection!  We can’t wait to launch it.

One request that we often receive is for a lunch box.  Many people use our non-insulated large travel kit as a lunch box.  Since we don’t want your yogurt to approach room temperature, an insulated box was in the mix.  The ladies loved it and had several more ideas.  They wanted to make sure it would work as a six pack cooler and suggested that it could be used for moms that pump and as a camera bag.  Keep watch for the Frio coming soon!  I can’t wait to get one in camouflage for myself.

We also talked about some of our previously retired items such as the leather journal, monogramed coasters that make great personalized gifts, a case for business cards, and a multi-purpose long pouch.  Based on their feedback, a few of these items will be coming out of retirement.  There was also popular demand to bring back our planner.  We need to do a little more research on that one but it’s on the table for consideration.

One last minute item added to the bunch was a rustic leather wallet that our production manager initially designed and handmade for himself.  He’s been telling us that long wallets for men are all the rage and he was right according to our focus group.  With enough room for his cards and a notepad, it’s his lifeline and we believe that men and women will love it as well.

We love creating and making handbags, backpacks, makeup cases, luggage and handmade gifts for you!  We took note of the special requests such as an agenda book, a wedding dress garment bag, gifts for bridesmaids.  We also appreciated hearing about the genius ways our customers use our diaper bag as a laptop bag and the shag bag in more ways than we thought possible.

We can’t wait to show you what’s next!
Have a great idea for a new JH item? Comment below and let us in on the #jhenius!

The JH Family