Function As Much As Form

Communication designer Varun Panesar’s idea to use better layouts to improve physical products took a surprising turn when he designed his first wallet

Tell us about your journey from UX/UI design to accessory design.

VP: I have been doing UX/UI for eight years and still continue to pursue it as a consultant. It has played an integral part in my journey as a designer. After designing several mobile applications and web platforms, I got insights into application of design to help solve problems and drive user action. The entire design process revolves around a very ‘human centered’ approach. That’s the biggest take away I got from UX/UI design, and I apply a similar ideology in accessory design as well. From the beginning of Forth, I knew that I wanted to design accessories that had good esthetics and functioned well as per user needs. When we say a ‘functional bag’, the most common method to approach the design is to give ‘n’ number of pockets to fit several things, with a lot of space and many different ways to open/close it, involve tech, etc. That’s not bad or incorrect - it is just a conventional way to approach product design.

Coming from a UX/UI background, I approach the design differently. I look for practical solutions. I am not interested in giving hundreds of ‘features’ but a product that is easy to interact with and use. It is more about eliminating the things we don’t generally need and keeping things that are of immediate use. A good product is not about more features but about better usability. I consider practical usage scenarios. That’s what I learnt from UX and now apply in accessory design. It has been a fun and insightful journey so far!

What is the story behind Forth?