Product Design/Product Management

How Licensing Taught Me to Prototype for the Pitch

Designing Keepsafe Critters for the Brands Kids Already Love

I had a patentable idea — but wasn’t foolish enough to think it would stand on its own.
This product needed something bigger.
A world. A brand. A story that kids already trust.

After building out the core concept of Keepsafe Critters, I realized the design had more potential than just a single lion lock. If I could expand the character lineup and make the concept flexible enough, it could become a licensing platform — something that adapted to established IP and retail needs.

So I retooled the idea.
Not just for the shelf…
But for the pitch.

Real licensing success requires more than logo overlays. Each prototype was crafted to fit a brand’s tone, values, and play style.

Think Beyond the Product. Think Platform.

Instead of a single SKU, I asked:

  • What if this was a format — a lock platform kids could personalize?
  • What if a Critter could become a brand mascot? A collectible?
  • What if kids could swap faces or change concepts based on their mood?

The insight was this: kids don’t just want function.
They want identity. Familiarity. Humor. Aspirational design.

And toy companies don’t just want cute ideas — they want extendable ecosystems.

So I prototyped versions that could live inside those worlds — tailored for the brand, the shelf, and the kid holding it.

A concept isn’t just a product — it’s a platform. Each sketch shows how the same base functionality could morph into something brand-specific.

Prototyping for the Brand Behind the Brand

To succeed in licensing, you need to show more than aesthetic alignment.
You need to think in that brand’s world — their tone, functionality, user base, and values.

So I imagined how Keepsafe Critters could morph:

  • A Hot Wheels lock that revs up and reveals a combo under the hood
  • A Barbie lock with a mirror and hidden keypad
  • A Rescue Hero that looks like a toy but acts like a lock

All rooted in the core functionality: feedback-based interaction, sound/light response, and emotional engagement.

A flower, a car, a hero. Designed for personality, pitched for scalability. This wasn’t a toy — it was a licensing framework.

Today’s Lesson: Pitch the Vision, Not the Sketch

This part of the process taught me that good licensing pitches don’t just show product design — they show brand alignment.
They remove the guesswork. They reduce the burden of imagination for the execs across the table.

I didn’t just design a toy.
I built a case for why my product belonged in their world.

It was my first real lesson in how product storytelling and licensing strategy go hand-in-hand.

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