From development models to business planning to promotion and communication, we have been working with the OCT Group to revitalise cultural resources into public life through the lens of brand action. The initial point of developing "Taking Gulao to go home" products is that, we hope to bring the lifestyle of Gulao river village back to daily life, and give visitors an authentic gift from Gulao. When visitors receive these cultural and creative products, they will be able to see the epitome of Gulao's rural life and feel the simplicity of Gulao.
01 The birth of the brand "Gulao Culture and Creativity"
Exploring the development of its own cultural and creative products for cultural tourism projects.
Delivering the unique charm of the Gulao river village.
In this project, we have been thinking about the role of cultural and creative products in cultural tourism projects. How to convey the leisurely countryside life, local cultures and natural landscape of the Gulao river village to the public through the perspective of products, forming a window of connection between the public and the Gulao river village. Initially, we went on field trips to experience the fascination of the Gulao. In the development process both the visual and material aspects of the products are based around the simple texture of Gulao. We develop products not only from visual symbols, but also from the culture of the Gulao river village, and control the feeling conveyed by the products in the product experience. The "Gulao Culture and Creativity" brand is a gift from Gulao, telling the real local stories of Gulao through products that speak to visitors.
02 Gulao Experience
Going to do field research
and the birth of a whimsical idea
In the run-up to the creation of the Gulao product, we visited seven ancient villages and 11 commercial sites again, also experienced two special consumer experiences. By visiting each village, we tried to understand the life of the local people and discover the real life of Gulao. The lifestyle of Gulao river village was gradually clarified during the visits, and all those buried bits and pieces of life were recorded in images and words. We wandered in the field, which provided fresh nutrients to nourish the creative products that follow.
Fish ponds, mounds, banyan trees, river surges and lotus flowers
These are the sights we saw most during the three days
A regular and peaceful routine of working and eating according to the time of year
Being invited by elder people to cool off under a banyan tree and experience the unique feeling
The quiet houses of the Ming and Qing dynasties in the river village
Burning ashes in front of the door
A silent record of the generations of Lingnan expatriates who left their homeland
The traces of the generations of expatriates who left their homeland and returned to build their homes
Gulao's cuisine is particularly rich
Fish skin dumplings, congee with taro and stone conch, black vinegar and ginger, duck shit vine cake .....
An unforgettable taste from Gulao
Every family learns Wing Chun
It is a medium for the people of Gulao to strengthen their bodies
Dragon boating in villages
A way for the people of Gulao to bond with each other
From these wandering notes, we can see the true state of the rustic, relaxed river village of Gulao. We were also inspired by them and selected 4 dimensions to reflect the real life of Gulao.
Based on these 4 dimensions, we started to think about creative ideas for development of Gulao’s cultural and creative products . We also held an internal selection session for our colleagues to choose their favourite products. The final selection was made up of 15 products.
The Gulao Culture and Creativity selection session
03 Connecting Gulao's cultural products
From a perspective of products development
Bringing the real life of Gulao back to everyday life
When conceiving our products, we wanted them to be rooted in the rural life of the Gulao river village and to incorporate the charm of Gulao from a product perspective. While maintaining the integrity of the product, we convey to consumers the quaint, local cultural quality of this rural life.We started with the visual senses of the product and based on our observations of the Gulao. we came up with the key words of localness, humanity and simplicity in the design. With a natural roughness and the texture of wild handwriting, we have made cultural creations of Gulao visually warmer.
In terms of content, our design elements are taken from actual scenes in Gulao, while combining them with the use of the products. This allows the product to be used in a way that connects to the elements of the Gulao river village and strengthens the senses in the process of using it.
Design sketch for Gulao Culture and Creativity
During the production process, we tested for the craftsmanship and materials of the products several times. Different techniques and materials were chosen to test the effect of the same product, hoping to bring the sensory aspects of the product closer to the simplicity of Gulao.
「Gulao Culture and Creativity」
Show Time
A. " Gulao Impressions" Scented Decoration Set
A selection of items that give the most impression of life in Gulao
The lotus pond, the green bricks and smoke, and the fragrance of fruits
A combination of visual and olfactory senses through aromatic imagery
The scent can be a good way to take you back to Gulao
Product and packaging design
"Heping" scented ornament
B."Heritage Fun" Gulao bookmark
A bookmark that explores the most unique aspects of the Gulao heritage
The flat and long head of the Heshan lion with the shape of a frog's mouth
The ritual of the rallying of the people of Gulao
Wing Chun on a boat as a unique martial arts practice in Gulao
These distinctive elements of Gulao's cultural heritage are incorporated into the bookmark
A moment of reflection and a glimpse of what makes Gulao so interesting
Product design
The "Heshan Lion Head" bookmark
"Dragon Rising Ceremony" bookmark
"Wing Chun on a Boat" bookmark
C.The "Memory of River Town" Canvas Bag
In August 2020, the first season of the Roving Gulao Project
The "Song Search" team went to Gulao
to discover the nursery rhymes that belong to the culture of Gulao
We extracted three nursery rhymes
transformed into visual symbols and incorporated into a canvas bag
Take these nursery rhymes with you
Sing them at a leisurely moment
Product design
《有只歌仔唔好教比人》
《催眠曲》
《干氹仔》
D.
In August 2020, the first season of the ‘Wandering in Gulao’ project
We invited "Yushan" artist to join us to
explore the vividness and poetry hidden in the Gulao.
The sensation of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching and feeling
provided soil for Yushan to do creation.
We develop products through the creative world of Mr. Yushan.
Product design rendering
Anti-mosquito stickers
Notebooks and fans
E. "Gulao pier" plate set
Pier where villagers could live and work, is a unique feature of Gulao
When you use this set at home, you can feel the free flow of the water in Gulao.
04 Creating a "curated" retail space
Not just a sales outlet for products
It is also a space to exhibit the culture of Gulao
Returning to products development of whole cultural tourism, we at ‘Gulao Culture and Creativity’ are not only thinking about how to incorporate Gulao's local culture into our cultural and creative products, but are also thinking of innovative possibilities in the offline sales of our products. Through retailing and curating, we hope that this space will also become a window for the public to experience the charm of Gulao river village, learn about the stories behind the cultural and creative products, and have a unique consumer experience.
The moment you step into the 'Gulao Cultural and Creative' space, you can learn about life in Gulao's water village in the exhibition preface and exhibition brochure. The shop will use a curatorial mindset to display, allowing them to become exhibits and creating an immersive scene to attract consumers and increase traffic.
Gulao Culture and Creativity shop experience
Product display section
The retail space of Gulao uses the most everyday production elements of fishing families, such as fishing nets and fishermen, as an entry point to present the charm of Gulao's fishing life. The villagers' joint weaving of fishing nets is used as an emotional cue to create an immersive space for installation.
"Gulao Culture and Creativity'' Shop Concept Design
"The Gulao Cultural and Creative'' Shop is a complete development of a content experience unit for a cultural and tourism project. We use the "Gulao that you can take with you" as the origin of the development, bringing the leisurely rural life of the Gulao back to daily life. The whole process of product planning, design, production, manufacturing and construction of retail experience will lead to the development of consumer content with culture as the carrier.
"Gulao Culture and Creativity is also a developmental platform, with continuous product development and curated retail space content updates, constantly create new reasons to cultural tourism projects. Thanks to our partners at OCT for joining us in this ongoing exploration, a good project will become a part of the public lifestyle, and good cultural and creative products will attach enduring evocations to that lifestyle.
