the Vista
designed for REI
REI’S first foray into this new category - the rooftop tent needed to be built from the ground up (literally & figuratively) beginning with a new research process.
Rooftop tents are both great & terrible.
and we had to figure out why.
Qualitative & Quantitative Research
to get a full view of the RTT (rooftop tent) experience, I led two bodies of research -qualitative interviews with RTT users & a quantitative survey. An analysis of that data led us to great insights, and further to a focus on 3 main areas of improvement.
Easy Egress
“We have a pet and that’s the main caveat. Going up and down the ladder might also be cumbersome.”
All but one of the interviewees listed their ladder as their biggest pain point with their rooftop tent
The ability for pets to get in and out of the tent is ranked 3rd in what makes users hesitant to use a rooftop tent.
Comfort
“My rooftop tent is so comfortable there’s no part of me that wonders if I’ll sleep well while camping.”
45% Of interviewees list comfort as the reason for using their rtt while 36% listed their mattress as their biggest pain points
The ability for pets to get in and out of the tent is ranked 3rd in what makes users hesitant to use a rooftop tent.
Storage
“In a perfect world, I’d be able to quickly take this on and off my truck, but that is just not the case.”
65% ranked light & easy to remove as a top 3 priority (after price & setup)
current & non-RTT users both ranked the ability to store the tent when it’s not on the car as a reason to be hesitant to purchase a tent
blending heritage & modernity
with REI’s values in mind, we needed to re-imagine what the aesthetic of the outdoors could be. we had to bridge the gap between old-school enthusiasts and bring comfort and approachability to the new and curious
Ideation
focusing on easy egress, comfort, and storage concepts worked through hard & soft shell RTTs & different solutions for construction.
the Vista
the final concept ended up being a hybrid soft & hard shell rooftop tent built to make camping easy with under 3-minute setup, more accessible egress, and added interior and exterior utility, complete with a porch to take in the beauty of nature.
the Details
our biggest improvements for rooftop tents came in the details, especially in the car attachment which tends to be the most arduous & frustrating task for installation
Clamp System
HOW CLAMPS WORK NOW
HOW THEY COULD (SHOULD) WORK
