This spring, Flourish Planet partnered with Emerson College's Graduate Strategic Marketing Communication Masters Program. Over the semester, students developed detailed marketing plans to support Flourish Planet, an ethical e-commerce platform for underserved artisans. The global artisan industry is booming, projected to be a $1 trillion industry by 2024, but many artisans are left behind. Flourish Planet aims to help them thrive.
This partnership was facilitated by Flourish Planet’s Chief Creative and Partnerships Officer, Mary Jo Viederman, and Professor Paul Caldera, marketing instructor for the class. Neelam Chhiber, co-founder of Industree Foundation, the NGO designed to build creative livelihoods for marginalized artisans and makers across India, introduced Flourish Planet to the graduate students, helping them to understand the genesis behind the e-commerce marketplace.
Professor Caldera guided the class on potential strategies for Flourish Planet as students formed three teams: Team 1 Agency, Team2Fish, and Hivemind Creative. They then began researching brand awareness, consumer knowledge in ethical e-commerce, shopping habits, and Flourish Planet's market presence and consumer impressions.
Midway through the semester, Flourish Fellow and Emerson alum Indigo Pinedo met with each team to provide feedback and guidance. Teams explored ideas such as pop-up stalls, newsletter designs, and more. They had made excellent progress and were excited to learn more about what they could add to their strategies.
By April, each team presented their strategies. Hivemind Creative’s ideas included updating the website’s accessibility to artisans to apply to vend, ideas for maker masterclass events and a “Meet the Maker” social media campaign. Team2Fish targeted the Indian-American diaspora with specialized posts, improved customer journey tactics, and how to develop a customized Corporate Gifting experience. Team 1 Agency suggested a colorful brand relaunch with an energetic brand tone and a “Made in __, by __” campaign.
Flourish Planet is now implementing many of these suggestions, including a Student Ambassador program, personalized order confirmation emails, a “Made in __, by __” social media campaign, reviews for the website, and specialized targeting for younger audiences.
The program’s ability to give the students real-world branding, marketing, and communications experience, acting as an agency is unique. The diversity of the class itself, with 82% of the students coming from different nationalities, propagated rich and distinctive approaches to presenting an emerging global startup. As Flourish Planet continues to implement these students’ wide range of strategies, we look forward to further collaborations such as this with Emerson College and other colleges and universities across the US.