MRF Tyredrome

How can we turn a mundane act into an automotive experience?

2021

Experience Design

The
Brief

MRF is India’s largest tyre manufacturer, and the 6th largest in the world. They currently have a wide range of offerings, from motorcycle tyres to cars and SUVs, and cater to a broad spectrum of budgets and use-cases. The brand itself also has a long history in motorsports(Formula 3, WRC etc.) as well as ties to the sport of cricket (MRF Pace foundation).

Tyredrome is a car and motorcycle service center, as well as a tyre sales center, from the brand MRF. While MRF has a few tyredromes around the India, they were beginning to show their age. For the new location in the center of Mumbai, they wanted a new design that would provide a better experience for customers, while also reflecting the brand. They approached Aspect Design to create a new concept for the space.

Design
Strategy

We started by looking back at the history of MRF and their current brand guidelines. We then looked at the best practices from around the world; not just for other tyre brands, but also car brands and service centers. Finally we considered behavioral design insights and cognitive biases that we might consider when designing the space.

Insights

We distilled our learnings down into 4 actionable insights that would inform the designs.

The service bay is an important part of the brand experience,and needs to be treated with as much care and attention to detail as the customer lounge.

While it may seem natural to treat the service bay purely as a functional element, it forms and important part of the overall experience. Customers will want to see the space their cars are being serviced in, and the layout of the space means they will have to pass through the service bay to enter the customer lounge or tyre stacking area.

Treating areas such as the service bay with a certain amount of care also ensures consistency across the space, which improves perception of the overall brand.

The service bay, tyre zone and customer lounge need to convey different emotions, and communicate different aspects of the brand.

The service bay needs to showcase MRF’s efficiency, technical expertise and reliability; the tyre zone needs to showcase the entire range of tyres, while communicating the differences and advantages of each; the customer zone needs to be a space for customers to relax while they wait, and interact with the larger MRF brand. Each area has a specific role to play in creating the overall experience.

Talking about testing and data is good; Showing it is even better.

While it is good to communicate data and information about testing, being able to show actual tests is far more engaging to a casual audience. Customers may not always be interested in, or understand the data, being able to watch or experience a real test will attract attention.

Sports cars to SUVs, and even motorcycles; the space needs to appeal to a wide range of automotive enthusiasts.

The space will cater to a range of different car and motorcycle buyers, and a range of different brands and tastes. Each will have their own preferences and requirements when it comes to tyres. But the space needs to find a common ground between them, while also highlighting the MRF Brand.

Initial Design

Finally, we presented the client with a new layout that met all their technical requirements, along with 2 different concepts for the look and feel of the space.

The first, “A Legacy of Excellence” built on MRF’s history and technical expertise in the space.

The second “In Motion” built on the feeling of speed and movement that all automotive enthusiasts crave.

Design Concept

With MRF’s rich racing heritage, the concept for the space was built around the feeling of being “In Motion”. When moving at a high rate of speed, the world around you blurs, and lights become streaks that quickly disappear.

This blurring of the world is captured through the frosted glass and metal, while linear LEDs mimic streaks of light.