# Mike Ely > Experiential Design and Innovation | Objects, Environments, Events Location: Berkeley, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/mikeely Mike is a designer who has enjoyed over two and a half decades working with many of the world’s most admired brands. He strives to invest the experience of things and places with meaning and purpose. He pursues this goal by harmonizing the needs and desires of both sponsors and audience. His superpower is listening to his colleagues, clients, stakeholders, and embracing their views and objectives with curiosity. He delights in collaboration toward objectives that cut across silos and bring together a range of expertise. His work has spanned environments and industrial design with an emphasis on product display systems and technology-integrated commercial furnishings. He honed his craft as designer in Nike’s Image Design group in Beaverton, Oregon designing retail systems and interactive exhibits for the Jordan Brand, Niketown, Nikestore, and Nikepark venues. His approach matured at multidisciplinary agency, Eight, Inc. in San Francsico, notably as a key contributor to the invention of the Apple Retail Store and Apple SIS programs, Coach flagships, and Citi Smart Banking pilots. Mike has led design and implementation of strategic initiatives for clients including Athleta, Carters, Frost Museum of Science, HP, Icon Aircraft, Intel, Nautilus-Hyosung, OP Financial, Sonos, Tesla and more. This work has been implemented globally and received numerous patents and awards. His expertise includes customer experience strategy, immersive brand story development, technology integration for environments and furnishings, fintech interactive hardware, brand CMF (colors, materials, finishes) specification, product hardware development and manufacturing oversight. ## Work Experience ### Principal @ Carbon Project Inc. Jan 2023 – Present | San Francisco Bay Area Business development and process management for environments and experiential projects for B2C consumer products clients. Creative emphasis on cultural relevance and site-specific solutions for regional audiences. • Project structuring inclusive of multi-agency workflows and cross-silo collaboration. • Proposal writing and contract reviews. • Identification and management of external resource capabilities. • Ensuring feasibility of physical design solutions. ### Senior Director, Brand Experience @ Super7 Jan 2021 – Jan 2023 | San Francisco, CA Collaborated with Founders and Brand Creative Director in the creation and execution of scalable brand environment strategy and asset program for consumer events, retail pop-up shops, partner retailer store-in-store programs and promotional materials. Accomplishments • Improved and streamlined year-round events operations processes. • Led 3D design and oversaw external mechanical design development. • Built a supplier and vendor network for program deployment. • Grew internal program management staff capability. • Emphasized pro-positivity work culture and fostered collaborative team creative process. ### Director of Product Development (Hardware) @ x8ventures Jan 2019 – Jan 2021 | San Francisco, CA Led external engineering and hardware procurement programs incubating human-centric IoT product concepts for commercialization. Collaborated with Design Directors and technologists to define product specifications and concept of operations guidelines; managed engineering development of hardware and firmware design; led RFP creation, vendor review and selection and contract negotiation for US and overseas engineering and design-for-manufacture services, prototyping, and production with original design manufacturers (ODMs). Accomplishments • Identified talent and assembled lean multi-disciplinary project-specific engineering teams of mechanical engineers, roboticists, electrical engineers and software designers. • Directed collaborative workshops between in-house design and external engineering teams to achieve executable solutions without degradation to usability or design-intent. • Oversaw prototyping and POC creation of robotic vending system demonstrating a first-in-class multi-axis retrieval system. • Interfaced with legal teams in administration of patents and manufacturing agreements. ### Associate Professor, Market Research @ California College of the Arts Jan 2018 – Jan 2020 | San Francisco, CA Taught course “Design Research—Market” surveying principles and methods of gathering, interpreting and expressing information and data representing potential market audiences. Developed course framework emphasizing strategic broad market human needs assessment. Prompted students to shift between independent and collaborative data collection and analysis to formulate novel insights culminating in a creative product design brief presentation. Accomplishments • Coached students to identify their audience across multiple life/cultural factors and construct useful human personas while avoiding archetype tropes and stereotypical profiling. • Mentored individuals on methods of working through obstacles and leveraging their unique 
points of view in rendering insights and heuristic breakthroughs. • Developed visualized process instruction materials to facilitate non-native-language learning. • Challenged students to work collaboratively and identify unexpected insights and discoveries through brainstorming, discussion, and role-play scenarios. ### Principal @ Eight Inc. Jan 2013 – Jan 2020 | San Francisco, CA Forged new client relationships through retail innovation projects addressing strategy, creative, and implementation projects across wellness, mobility, finance, and electronics markets for clients including OP Bank, Sonos, Athleta, Tesla, Intel and Icon Aircraft. Provided insights and creative leadership while managing local and global collaborative projects. Fostered and grew global operations coordination and supported company-wide reorganization increasing communication and productivity. Accomplishments • Strategy—OP Bank, Retail Experience Reinvented, envisioned how Finland’s largest financial institution could leverage its broad branch network to increase broad populace wellbeing in its play to expand into healthcare, mobility services and retirement investment planning. Structured to bolster government efforts to stabilize rural townships and incentivize local entrepreneurs and community economic growth. • Creative—Tesla, Retail 2.0 Concept, proposed how the electric car maker could enhance its storytelling and merchandise retailing capability to meet the luxury image and innovation of its product offering. Proposed a curated flexible technology exhibit system and merchandised sales lounge inside a technology-forward exterior facade to differentiate the brand leader from emerging competitor products available through legacy dealers. • Implementation—Sonos, “Field Day” Channel Retail, designed, prototyped and rolled out a consistent, high-touch interactive product display and live-demo system across the Americas, EMEA and APAC. Incorporating program requirements from market leading retailers in each region, the system allowed Sonos to enjoy the highest efficiency and quality manufacturing methods at value through mass manufacturing of an evergreen and adaptable solution. ### Studio Director @ Eight Inc. Jan 2007 – Jan 2013 Returned to Eight Inc. during a period of global studio expansion and diversification into technology and digital interaction design. My interests and curiosity lead me to pursue projects featuring tech-enabled experiential branded environments—embedding “smart” capabilities and hardware within lighting, furnishings, and spaces enabling new experiences, interactions and use-cases. Clients included Best Buy, Citi, Hearts On Fire, HP, Jawbone, JCPenney, Patricia and Phillip Frost Museum of Science, Tesla Motors and Tourneau. Accomplishments • Citi Smart Banking, Japan and EMEA—a digital transformation retail branch experience pilot blending architecture, operations, and customer touchpoint engagements providing an innovation “north star” for the global brand. Creative team and client leadership for development, prototyping and deployment of new integrated technology including automated teller and digital transaction workstations, touch-interactive kiosks and custom modular furniture partitions systems manufactured to specification in Japan and South Korea. • Critical rethinking of natural science exhibition methodologies for Frost Museum of Science in Miami—to create a systemic and modular approach to living and artifact exhibits and educational communication tools. Included prototyping and on-site user-testing demonstrating exceptionally high visitor learning success scores measured by pedagogic evaluation consultants. • Luxury retail experience experience and product merchandising innovation for diamond jewelry brand Hearts On Fire. Removed boundaries between customer and host through a patented vertical presentation system bringing product to eye level and fostering peer to peer conversation. ### Visual Manager, Events and Environments @ JanSport, a VF Company Jan 2006 – Jan 2007 | San Leandro, CA Seeking change and reconnection with sporting goods industry lead to the outdoor division of VF and JanSport to provide creative direction and program management of events, trade shows, company store and third-party retail during a period of reorganization. Directed and managed capital projects within JanSport Marketing. Accomplishments • Company Store build-out—repurposed existing corporate real estate, opening on-time and in-budget. Created branded store experience demonstrating expanded product line diversity open to JanSport employees and community. • Reimagined trade show experience and supporting assets—created two modular programs capable of running in parallel, scalable to venue and market-specific merchandising requirements, including in-store simulations, open plan meetings and closed door conference sessions. Negotiated production labor challenges to maintain on-time and in-budget deployment. • Customized 1967, 17 window VW Samba Van concept vehicle commemorating 40th year anniversary of JanSport founding. Project involved brainstorming concept with CEO and executive team, sourcing and negotiating vehicle purchase, interior redesign and audio-visual system integration, exterior refurbishment and commemorative vinyl graphic wrap. Unveiled at summer sales meeting providing a tremendous company morale boost. ### Senior Designer @ Eight Inc. Jan 1999 – Jan 2006 | San Francisco, CA Brought in by San Francisco based architecture and design studio Eight, Inc. as its nascent relationship with Apple deepened and workload increased on the cusp of the “Think Different” campaign. My background of brand marketing coupled with industrial design aligned with anticipated consumer environments and experiential retail projects—I quickly became a full time team member. The client relationships I supported expanded to include Apple, Coach, Carters, Gap, and Nokia. Accomplishments • Design and development of point of sale and product launch displays and hardware for Apple’s revolutionary iMac, iBook, and PowerMac G3 product line. • Senior design leader in the development and prototyping of Apple’s first store-in-store retail program, launching in San Francisco and New York; worked closely with Nomura in Japan for Japan-wide roll-out. • Apple Retail Stores project fixtures and interior elements design lead. A two-year journey of exploratory design, testing and execution of first 5 in-market flagship stores. Included extensive iterative experiential prototyping in the infamous Bubb Road warehouse facility, intensive coordination and engineering interface with multiple vendors, in-factory production review and on-site installation oversight. • Design team fixture and furnishings lead for Coach flagship luxury concept overhaul from ideation through engineering implementation. Included detail mechanical assembly and modular systems design and integrated lighting miniaturization. • Carter’s retail flagship and concept store merchandising systems design leadership, providing creative direction, vendor oversight and client representation for retail brand experience redesign. ### Freelance Designer @ MEdesigner Jan 1998 – Jan 1999 | Berkeley, CA San Francisco Bay Area freelance industrial design practice focused on branded retail display systems and point-of-sale displays for client groups within Nike, small startups, and contributing to larger projects for the agency Landor. Accomplishments • Nike Vision-Timing: designed, developed, and consulted through engineering, eyewear and sports watch display systems at all scales from in-case displays and store fixtures to Niketown presentation systems and pavilions. • Nike Equipment Group: launched comprehensive Nike Golf pro-shop (apparel, footwear, product) display program with the . • Landor: created a nationally deployed interior furnishings program for Key Bank supporting rapid growth and brand experience coherence. Activities included concept ideation, visual direction, vendor sourcing, bid solicitation and engineering oversight. ### Brand Experience Designer @ Nike Jan 1996 – Jan 1998 | Beaverton, OR Nike Image Design—a cross-disciplinary brand agency within Nike supporting client groups across the organization. Contributed to company growth through team and independent projects for clients in Product Marketing, Equipment, Retail, Events, and Advanced Technology Engineering. Brought Silicon Valley industrial design means and methods to grow capabilities within the team. Accomplishments • Introduced mass-manufacture methods to retail merchandising systems for increased brand impact, scalability, speed to market, and cost savings. • Early proponent of applying Nike product CMF to retail and event environment design conceptualization and realization. • Exhibit design lead for award-winning Nikepark pavilion for the ’96 Olympic Games in Atlanta. • Conceived and presented Jordan Brand Retail Store-In-Store concept to Michael Jordan for design approval of in-store retail brand launch. • Interpreted, developed and incorporated brand 3D/2D visual storytelling methodology for product display and interactive exhibits in Niketown, Nikestore, and Nikeshop tiered retail programs. • Co-developed advanced, first of its kind, foot contour scanning experience launched at Niketown New York grand opening providing non-intrusive biomechanics analysis. • Worked directly with vendors and manufacturers to support engineering development, quality assurance, and systems compatibility. ### Industrial Designer @ Montgomery Pfeifer Jan 1992 – Jan 1996 | San Francisco, CA First staff designer and model maker for San Francisco based boutique industrial design studio serving technology companies in Silicon Valley and internationally. Projects ranged from 3D brand language to ergonomics and use-case exploration and prototyping for emergent technologies. Accomplishments • Johnson&Johnson, personal blood glucose monitor design (brought to market). • Sun Microsystems, brand language design for various desktop computers, display monitors, and data storage devices (multiple brought to market). • Dexxa, desktop gaming joystick design and development (brought to market). • Logitech, brand language and ergonomic design development and testing for computer mice, stylus, scanners, and cameras (multiple brought to market). • Apple, 20th Anniversary iMac (runner up), accessories design. • Model shop facility and operations improvement providing increased staff co-use and project volume. ### Contract Designer @ Apple Computer Jan 1991 – Jan 1991 | Cupertino, CA Designer working within Apple’s Industrial Design Group in Cupertino. Reporting to the Studio Director and working with senior design staff on a variety of projects ranging from future concept exploration to for-market track. Preparing creative concept exploration, CAD documentation and physical prototyping. Accomplishments • Designed and developed Centris “pizza box” desktop computer for the business market (brought to market). • Detailing and ergonomic affordance design language for handheld device accessories. • Early-stage concept and use-case exploration for personal mobile computing devices. ## Education ### BFA with Honors in Industrial Design California College of the Arts ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/mike-ely --- Source: https://flows.cv/mikeely JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/mikeely/resume.json Last updated: 2026-04-08