A forum for celebration and appreciation.
Unboxed is Square’s annual conference, bringing together the partners and developers that make the Square platform a thriving ecosystem of solutions that power the SMB economy. Held since 2017, the event has taken different shapes through the years. In 2023, we brought together a select number of partners to the Square Oakland HQ, for an appreciation event, providing them with opportunities to network and make meaningful connections with engineers, executives and like-minded individuals.
The event’s agenda was specifically the Partner and Developer experience, with a focus on what’s next.
We offered updates on the state of the platform and product announcements, hosted a panel featuring Square’s CEO Alyssa Henry and OpenAI’s Peter Welinder on the future of AI and its application for SMBs and were joined by our engineering and UX design teams for engaging workshops with partners and clients.
The art direction followed Square’s brand guidelines, and added a nod to our community using real imagery from real partners. It also introduced the use of ‘racer yellow’ as a prominent brand color.
The catch…? Well budget, of course! With tighter budgets across the board, my team was tasked to produce the whole event — design and art direction, experience, speaker coordination… — for 1/5 of the budget from previous years. In spite of the constraints, no details were spared. From badges, swag and catering, my team produced an incredible experience that made our partners feel incredibly special.
No detail was spared. Our team found a really fun sticker system for guests to self-identified.
And as a way to highlight small and medium businesses in our hosting community, we partnered with Oakland’s Black Cultural Zone, who brought in some local sellers to showcase their products and talk about their businesses.
The Square Unboxed homepage was designed according to the Unboxed brand, featuring a dynamic background.
Role: Executive Creative Director, strategy generator
Team:
Vijay Vachani — General Manager, Developers and Partners
Marylise Tauzia — Lead, Developer Relations, Product Marketing, Technical Documentation and Partnerships Ops
Cristina Forsstrom — Executive Producer
Erin Robert — Creative Director
Olivia Gericke — Project Manager
Linda Hewing — Producer
Rachel Mendelsohn — Art Director
Scott Polhemus — Copywriter
Jared Kitade — Interactive Designer
Chris Mah — Motion Design
Johnnie Tran — Production Design
Ayo Suber and Chris Woodward — Design Technology