via kerala‘s Wild 5 Five collection was designed to raise awareness about the fauna of the Periyar forest by setting forth 5 wildlife ambassadors. To decide which 5, the team of designers at Thought Factory carried out thorough research on the fauna of the Periyar Tiger Reserve in online journals and books, blogs and libraries.

For scientific validation they met with a local ecologist, and a conservation biologist who helped out with the data unavailable online. The species forming part of the Wild5Five were carefully chosen according to the part they play in the local ecosystem : Lion-tailed Macaque and Nilgiri Thar are endemic species of the Periyar region. Periyar Tiger reserve is home to around 50 healthy tigers and over 700 Asian elephants. There is also the Great Indian Pied Hornbill, the state bird of Kerala.

During conceptualization, the team led by Tess Joseph George chose the colour scheme and the substrate: the types of paper and fabrics to be used in the new range of products. Then they explored the different surface finishes available before applying the concept to the different substrates. “Sometimes it works the other way too!” explains Tess Joseph George, “We discover a new ‘wow’ material or a finish and we rack our brains to find something that would perfectly use that particular quality of the material/ finish.”