A mystery plant and collectible figure kit designed to make beginner gardening fun, aesthetic, and accessible combining nature, surprise, and play into one experience.
Problem
Assigned SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities & Communities) for our class project, we wanted to encourage small scale, accessible greenery in urban living spaces. Many college students love the idea of having plants but struggle to start due to limited time, knowledge, space, or confidence.
Our goal was to lower the barrier to entry for first time plant owners while making the experience exciting and giftable through mystery box mechanics and collectible figures.
Method
Product Development
We created Hidden Garden, a line of mystery plant boxes that included:
Soil
Seeds
A small terracotta pot
A matching 3D-printed collectible figure
A themed, brightly colored mystery-box package
I contributed to:
Designing and assembling the physical kits
Reinforcing packaging after early prototypes broke
Improving visual consistency between figures, packaging, and brand aesthetic
Helping with 3D-printed figure iteration
The contents of our kits
Our Selling booth at Boston University
Our first sale at Boston University
User Testing & Market Research
To validate the product, our team conducted two full testing phases and pop up selling sessions at:
Boston University
Wellesley College
We interviewed 60+ potential customers, tested different price points, compared “plant only” vs. “plant + figure,” and gathered feedback on packaging appeal, figure design, and the mystery experience.
Our second iteration of the kit. We decided to add an instruction card for the specific mystery plant that was received along with a $1 back initiative that people would be inclined to respond to our survey.
Results
Across all sessions, Hidden Garden consistently appealed to our target demographic primarily college aged women attracted to cute, collectible items.
Key findings:
$5–$8 was the ideal price range for impulse buys
People overwhelmingly preferred the plant + figure combo
The mystery element was effective only when priced affordably
Customers wanted more figure variety and seasonal themes
We sold 16 boxes total, validating the core concept and identifying opportunities for future improvement such as:
Expanding figure designs
Creating holiday or themed series
Adding simple planting instructions
Establishing an online presence for return buyers
Hidden Garden blended product design, branding, and real market testing and gave us hands on experience turning a playful idea into a functional, testable consumer product.
