opendoorslowly | stephen wahl

Principal, Design + Creative Strategy

  • Lead an independent design and strategy practice focused on industrial design, creative direction, and AI + hardware integration across consumer electronics and emerging technology categories.

  • Advise growth-stage and early-stage companies on product vision, design system development, and hardware development strategy, from concept through manufacturing.

  • Actively engaged in the intersection of AI and physical product design, bringing a design leadership perspective to companies building intelligent hardware.

Director of Design

  • Built and led the design function across product, packaging, and marketing, establishing a unified design language spanning all product categories from scratch.

  • Won CES Product of the Year for Drop's first proprietary audiophile wireless headphones, competing against the world's largest consumer electronics brands.

  • Founded and scaled an in-house design and engineering development team based in Taiwan, enabling faster iteration and tighter manufacturing integration between design and production.

  • Managed global supplier relationships across every phase of the product lifecycle, from initial concept and tooling through mass production.

R+D Manager - Retail Real Estate Design and Development

  • Led research and development of interior and exterior visual branding systems integrated across Apple's global retail portfolio, from material exploration through installation.

  • Established an architectural logo style guide and a 5-year global installation strategy covering approximately 90 stores worldwide, identifying risks based on layout, onsite conditions, and construction realities.

  • Coordinated international supplier development and introduced new material applications, prioritizing decisions by sales volume, visibility, cost, and timing.

Co-Founder & Chief Creative / Operations Officer

  • Co-founded an organic baby products delivery service and led all design, brand, UX, and operational functions from launch through regional expansion across the greater Bay Area.

  • Designed and implemented brand identity across every digital and physical touchpoint: marketing, web, trade shows, vehicles, and uniforms, building a coherent customer experience from the ground up.

  • Developed and managed full logistics and operations: warehouse staff, delivery drivers, route planning, and growth strategy.

Senior Design & Content Lead

  • Spent 14 years at one of the world's foremost design and innovation consultancies, leading creative work across industries including consumer products, healthcare, technology, and public institutions.

  • Led design and strategic direction for an exhibition at the Smithsonian Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum on the practice and impact of Design Thinking.

  • Built and sustained long-term client relationships with a focus on systemic, durable impact, moving beyond project delivery to become an embedded strategic partner.

  • Championed human-centered research methods and mentored junior designers through weekly internal design critiques and creative challenges.

Senior Industrial Designer

  • Designed and developed workspace products addressing the rapid integration of emerging technology into the modern office environment.

  • Contributed to Details becoming the most profitable division within Steelcase, reaching that milestone within five years of the division's founding.

Industrial Designer

  • Contributed to the design of OXO Good Grips, one of the most recognized industrial design programs in history, and the J&J/REACH children's toothbrush.

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