Intern, Industrial Design

We're designing a temporary retail pop-up store inside an ~8,000 sq ft enclosed retail space in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. The store opens mid-IMay. It's for a major licensed IP brand with a passionate fan community — think product drops, limited editions, and high-volume merch sales over a concentrated window.

The design challenge
This isn't a simple brand activation. We're selling approximately 150 SKUs across multiple product categories — plushies, apparel, accessories, lapel pins, backpacks, and more. Volume is high, product sells down fast, and the floor needs to work hard from day one through closing.

You'll be designing a space that:
- Has clearly defined product zones (collections, teams, event exclusives)
- Handles high foot traffic and fast-moving inventory gracefully
- Uses a mix of existing on-site fixtures and &drop-owned gondola-style slat wall units
- Is modular and adaptable as product sells out or is rotated
- Translates a licensed IP's visual language into a physical retail environment using approved brand elements

What we need from you
- Overall retail environment concept and spatial layout
- 3D renderings of the space and designs
- Floor plan and footprint planning — you'll be working from a 2D floor plan and Matterport 3D scan of the actual space
- Fixture plan incorporating existing assets + new fabrication needs

Not required but if you have experience we could use help with planogramming — where does each product type live, how much space does it need, how does it adapt as inventory depletes

What we're handling on our end:
- 2D graphics and final artwork (we have an internal team and style guides)
- Project management and client communication
- Fabrication vendor relationship
- Inventory data and SKU lists

Who we're looking for
- Experience in physical retail design, pop-up environments, or brand activation spaces
Strong spatial layout and planogram skills — you understand how product density, fixture spacing, and customer flow interact
- Comfortable working with existing fixture constraints, not just designing from scratch
- Familiarity with licensed IP brand environments is a major plus including gaming, entertainment, toy, or collectibles retail experience is a significant advantage
- Expert at 3D modeling tools; rendering capability

Able to move fast — first deliverable is end of March