Fun for Rent

I have a great business idea. It’s called “Rent a Tot,” and it’s a joint babysitting/hourly rental service that matches people who want a few hours away from their kids with childfree folks who want to do something kid-related, but don’t have a little person to take along.

Suspend your disbelief for a few moments, and consider the pure fun of spending a day at the zoo, the aquarium or even the ball pit at McDonald’s. In fact, satirist news outlet The Onion has already suggested this for senior citizens. You can technically do any of these things as a single adult, but where’s the fun in that? These venues are designed for kids; everyone else is mostly getting in the way.

That bad business idea aside, the absence of fun in retail designs for adults is a serious problem. Katie Baron of Stylus pointed it out in “The Power of Play,” last year at IRDC and I saw it in action on a walking tour of Vancouver retail at IRDC 2013.

As my group stepped into Chapters, a local bookstore, we looked around for exceptional design or merchandising and wondered, “Where’s the draw?”  Five minutes later, we found it amidst a multi-color, fanciful Indigo Kids section on the second floor.

Polka-dotted walls, suspended balloons (what were those made from?), oversized stuffed animals and teacup seating areas set underneath a colorful, banner-shaped entry way had everyone lingering in this section.

We couldn’t take photos because the concept is so fun that the store is worried you’d steal it. But here’s a similar section in another store. See? Fun.

We see so many sleek, upscale, minimalist concepts that I’m starting to flag these adjectives as I edit VMSD. These stores are lovely, but sometimes you just want to jump in the ball pit, you know?  And not many parents are stepping forward for my kid renting service, so, designers, it’s up to you.