KLAX | leafindex-designlab

"DARE TO BE DIFFERENT"

thematic advertisement
for KLAX - a new brand under KITO Group (China)
year 2022

Our team was engaged by KLAX (KITO Group's slab-surface home brand in China) to develop a full brand campaign built around the tagline "Dare to Be Different" (想不一样就不一样). We structured the campaign into multiple parallel creative lines, each carrying its own conceptual thesis expressed as a short English subline, with each line then rendered across several thematic and format variations. The sculpture line paired classical marble busts and figures with alternate material treatments — metal, concrete, water-textured finishes — to dramatize transformation and material possibility. The wildlife line reimagined a zebra in rainbow-painted stripes and a lion with braided mane accessories, both carrying the subline "attraction makes impression," using unexpected visual disruption to command attention. The tactile line paired a hand pressed against layered rock texture with bare feet walking a shoreline, under the subline "sensitivity makes comfortability," using touch and skin contact to evoke the sensory experience of surface material. All headline copy, subline copy, supporting Chinese taglines, and visual concepts across every line were developed by our team; the KLAX brand name and logo are the client's own and were not part of our scope. The campaign was adopted and launched by the client.

Scope: Campaign concept and creative direction, tagline system (headline + English sublines + Chinese sub-taglines), and visual concept development across all creative lines (sculpture/material, wildlife, tactile).
(KLAX brand name and logo: client's own, pre-existing.)

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"MOTIVE" PRODUCT CATALOGUE

CONCEPTUALIZATION

product brochure
for KLAX - a new brand under KITO Group (China)
year 2022

For KLAX (KITO Group's slab-surface home brand in China), our team developed the "意 MOTIVE" product catalogue as one half of a two-part categorization framework dividing KLAX's slab products into "意 MOTIVE" (concept-driven) and "质 MATTER" (material-driven) — the two are presented to the market as separate catalogues, though the underlying framework was conceived as one unified structure. Within MOTIVE, we further defined three creative series: "时尚顽色 Lasting Tonality," built on curated solid-color palettes drawing from Macaron, Morandi, and monochrome black-white-grey tones alongside contemporary guochao-inspired color trends; "自然灵感 Nature Inspiration," translating natural phenomena — starry skies, ocean currents, aurora — into slab surface patterns designed to layer atop stone or other textures for added visual depth; and "人文创想 Thematics Expression," channeling Chinese cultural motifs, folk heritage, and traditional iconography into surface design as a way of giving the slabs cultural narrative weight. Each series carries its own English positioning line (Lasting Tonality / Nature Inspiration / Thematics Expression) alongside the Chinese naming and descriptive copy, all developed by our team as part of the overall categorization and naming system for the KLAX product range.

Scope: Two-tier product categorization framework (MOTIVE/MATTER), naming and positioning of all three MOTIVE series, and all series descriptive copy (Chinese and English).
(KLAX brand name and logo: client's own, pre-existing.)

我们团队为KLAX（KITO集团旗下岩板家居品牌，中国）打造了"意 MOTIVE"产品图册，是"意/质"两大分类框架中的一支——"意 MOTIVE"（概念驱动）与"质 MATTER"（材质驱动）分别以独立图册对外呈现，但底层的分类框架本身是作为一套统一逻辑构思而成的。在"意"之下，我们进一步划分出三个创意系列："时尚顽色 Lasting Tonality"，以马卡龙色系、莫兰迪色系、经典黑白灰及国潮流行色调为基础的纯色产品方向；"自然灵感 Nature Inspiration"，将星空、海洋、极光等自然现象转化为岩板表面纹理，可叠加在石纹或其他肌理岩板之上形成更丰富的视觉层次；"人文创想 Thematics Expression"，以中华文化符号、民族风情、传统图腾为灵感来源，为岩板赋予文化叙事的重量。每个系列都配有对应的英文定位语（Lasting Tonality / Nature Inspiration / Thematics Expression）与中文命名及解说文案，均由我们团队作为KLAX整体产品分类与命名体系的一部分完成。

工作范围：意/质两层产品分类框架，"意"系列下三个子系列的命名与定位，以及全部系列解说文案（中英文）。
（KLAX品牌名称与logo：客户原有，非本人团队创作。）

MATTER 01

"MATTER 01" PRODUCT CATALOGUE

CONCEPTUALIZATION

product brochure
for KLAX - a new brand under KITO Group (China)
year 2022

Our team developed the "质 MATTER" product catalogue for KLAX (KITO Group's slab-surface home brand in China), the counterpart to the "意 MOTIVE" catalogue within the same two-part categorization framework. Drawing on the five classical elements — metal, wood, water, fire, and earth — we named five product series: "鑫 (Metal)," "森 (Wood/Fabric/Leather)," "淼 (Cementitious/Terrazzolite)," "焱 (Fired/High-Temperature Glaze)," and "垚 (Stone) ." The "垚" series, originally named "原石美岩" by the client, was renamed by our team and folded into the five-element framework; it was further divided into four sub-categories distinguished by color and each anchored to a different civilization theme: Athens White marble, Nankeen Luxury marble, Rome Natural stone, and Persian Grey marble. All five series names, the renaming of the stone series, the four civilization-themed sub-category names, and all accompanying descriptive copy were developed by our team and have been adopted and implemented by the client.

Scope: Naming of the five-element MATTER classification framework (Metal/Wood/Water/Fire/Stone), renaming of the stone series (originally client-named "原石美岩") and its four civilization-themed sub-categories, and all series descriptive copy (Chinese and English).
(KLAX brand name and logo: client's own, pre-existing.)

我们团队为KLAX（KITO集团旗下岩板家居品牌，中国）打造了"质 MATTER"产品图册，是"意/质"两大分类框架中的另一支，以金、木、水、火、土五种古老元素为灵感来源，划分出"鑫""森""淼""焱""垚"五大产品系列，分别对应金属类、木纹/纺织/皮革类、水泥及水磨加工类、特殊釉料及高温提炼材质类、天然岩石类。其中"垚"系列（原客户命名为"原石美岩"，由我们团队重新命名并纳入五行体系）进一步细分为四个以颜色区分、并各自对应不同文明主题的小品类：雅典白石（Athens White marble）、南京奢石（Nankeen Luxury marble）、罗马岩石（Rome Natural stone）、波斯灰石（Persian Grey marble）。五大系列命名、"垚"系列改名及其下四个文明主题子分类命名，以及全部系列解说文案，均由我们团队完成，已获客户采纳并落地使用。

工作范围：质MATTER五行分类框架（鑫/森/淼/焱/垚）命名，"垚"系列重新命名（原客户命名"原石美岩"）及其下四个文明主题子分类命名，以及全部系列解说文案（中英文）。
（KLAX品牌名称与logo：客户原有，非本人团队创作。）

MATTER 02

"MATTER 02" PRODUCT CATALOGUE

CONCEPTUALIZATION

product brochure
for KLAX - a new brand under KITO Group (China)
year 2022

Our team developed the second catalogue within KLAX's "质 MATTER" series, covering four series: "鑫 (Metal)," "森 (Wood/Fabric/Leather)," "淼 (Cementitious/Terrazzolite)," and "焱 (Fired/High-Temperature Glaze)." The Metal series centers on metallic surface finishes, projecting understated luxury suited to minimalist and industrial interiors. The Wood/Fabric/Leather series spans natural wood grain, processed timber, cotton and linen textures, animal leather, and leopard print, balancing warm, organic comfort with an edge of untamed character. The Cementitious series returns to raw architectural materials — cement, concrete, terrazzo — rendered in refined grey tones that speak to both understated luxury and wabi-sabi minimalism. The Fired series uses special glaze effects and high-temperature processing to achieve textured relief or localized sheen, evoking warmth and intensity. All four series names, their pinyin annotations, and the full descriptive copy were developed by our team and have been adopted and implemented by the client.

Scope: MATTER series, second catalogue — naming and full descriptive copy (Chinese and English) for the Metal, Wood/Fabric/Leather, Cementitious, and Fired series.
(KLAX brand name and logo: client's own, pre-existing. Overall attribution of the MATTER five-element framework covered in the summary case to follow.)

我们团队为KLAX（KITO集团旗下岩板家居品牌，中国）打造了"质 MATTER"系列的第二本产品图册，收录"鑫""森""淼""焱"四个系列——分别对应金属类、木纹/纺织/皮革类、水泥及水磨石类、特殊釉料及高温提炼材质类。"鑫"系列聚焦金属表面处理效果，以低调高级感支撑极简与工业风的室内格调；"森"系列涵盖原木木纹、木质加工、棉麻纺织、动物皮革及轻奢豹纹等表面装饰，兼具清新自然的温暖质感与突破常规的野性张力；"淼"系列以水泥、混凝土、水磨石回归建筑本质，用精致灰调演绎轻奢与侘寂风潮流；"焱"系列则以特殊釉料及高温提炼工艺打造凹凸肌理或局部亮光效果，呈现热情与力量感。四个系列的命名、拼音标注及全部解说文案均由我们团队原创完成，已获客户采纳并落地使用。

工作范围：质MATTER系列第二本图册——鑫/森/淼/焱四个系列的命名与全部解说文案（中英文）。
（KLAX品牌名称与logo：客户原有，非本人团队创作。质MATTER五行分类框架整体归属见后续总结案例说明。）

"质MATTER"产品分类框架，是本人团队为该品牌设计的众多分类体系中较具文学分量的一次尝试。区别于行业中常见的、直接挪用"金木水火土"五行单字作为系列命名的做法，本人团队进一步利用了汉字本身的构造逻辑——将五行元素各自"三叠"，衍生出鑫（三金）、森（三木，涵盖木纹、纺织与皮革表面）、淼（三水，涵盖水泥、混凝土与水磨石表面）、焱（三火，涵盖特别釉料与高温提炼材质）、垚（三土，涵盖天然原石与岩石，原客户命名"原石美岩"，经本人团队重新命名后纳入框架）五大系列名称。这一命名方式在保留五行文化联想的基础上，叠加了汉字构字本身的巧思与深意，为品牌提供了一层比单一五行符号更具"文化自信"意味的叙事包装，突破了单纯归类命名的惯常做法——归类逻辑本身并无不同，但Conceptualization（概念化）这一步走得更深，动用了汉字构字学的文化资源。与"质MATTER"并行的"意MOTIVE"分类（时尚顽色、自然灵感、人文创想三系列），则构成了整套框架里更具想象力与延展性的一翼，二者共同构成KLAX 2022年完整的Categorization×Conceptualization双层框架实践。

KLAX's 2022 "MATTER" product categorization framework stands as one of the more literary and layered pieces of work our team has developed for the brand. Rather than simply borrowing the conventional Five Elements (Metal, Wood, Water, Fire, Earth) as standalone category names — a common approach in the industry — our team went a step further by drawing on the internal logic of Chinese character construction itself: each element was tripled to form a new character, yielding five series names — 鑫 Xīn (three "metal" radicals, covering metallic surfaces), 森 Sēn (three "wood" radicals, extended to cover wood grain, fabric, and leather surfaces), 淼 Miǎo (three "water" radicals, covering cement, concrete, and terrazzolite surfaces), 焱 Yàn (three "fire" radicals, covering special glaze effects and other high-temperature refined materials), and 垚 Yáo (three "earth" radicals, covering natural marble and stone — originally named "原石美岩" by the client, subsequently renamed and integrated into the framework by our team). This naming approach retains the cultural resonance of the Five Elements while layering in the added depth and craft of Chinese character formation itself, giving the brand a narrative packaging with a stronger sense of cultural confidence than a straightforward elemental label would offer — the underlying categorization logic remained the same, but the Conceptualization stage was pushed further, drawing on the linguistic and cultural resources of character construction. Running alongside "MATTER" is "MOTIVE" (comprising Lasting Tonality, Nature Inspiration, and Thematics Expression), the more imaginative and expansive counterpart within the same structure. Together, MATTER and MOTIVE form KLAX's complete 2022 Categorization × Conceptualization framework.

2023 Master

"2023" GENERAL CATALOGUE

CONCEPTUALIZATION

product brochure
for KLAX - a new brand under KITO Group (China)
year 2023

KLAX's 2023 General Catalogue was developed following a change in the client's internal sales leadership, when the incoming director chose to move away from the culturally-driven Five Elements categorization used in the 2022 catalogue and return to conventional, material-based naming — Stone Look, Marble Look, Cement Look, Wood Look, Metal Look, Wallpaper Look, and Colour Look — a more literal system aligned with common industry practice. Working within this new direction, our team introduced a fashion-driven visual language across the catalogue: each material category is paired with real fashion photography and styled models, translating the tactile and visual character of each surface — from the raw geological texture of stone to the tailored precision of cement — into a wearable, human register. The intent was to give an otherwise straightforward material classification a sense of narrative and life, using fashion as the connective thread between surface and story. The catalogue spans over 240 pages across all categories and has been fully adopted and printed by the client.

Scope: Fashion-driven visual concept and creative direction pairing each material category with styled fashion photography.
(Category naming and classification system — Stone/Marble/Cement/Wood/Metal/Wallpaper/Colour Look — reflects the client's own material-based naming convention, adopted by incoming sales leadership in place of the 2022 Five Elements framework; not originated by our team.)

KLAX 2023总目录的启动，源于客户内部销售负责人更替——新任总监决定放弃2022年图册所采用的、以五行文化叙事为核心的分类方式，回归行业惯用的直白材质命名系统：石材Look、大理石Look、水泥Look、木纹Look、金属Look、壁纸Look、色彩Look。在这一新方向下，本人团队为整本图册引入了时尚视觉语言：每个材质分类均搭配真实时装摄影与造型模特，将各类岩板表面的视觉与触感特质——从石材的原始地质纹理到水泥的精准利落——转译为一种可"穿"的、有温度的人文语言，用时尚作为连接材质与叙事的纽带，为原本平铺直叙的材质分类注入故事感与生命力。全书涵盖各分类共计240余页，已被客户完全采纳并印刷落地。

工作范围：为每个材质分类搭配时尚摄影造型的视觉概念与创意执行
（分类命名与系统本身——石材/大理石/水泥/木纹/金属/壁纸/色彩Look——反映客户自有的材质命名惯例，为新任销售负责人接手后决定采用，取代2022年五行框架，非本人团队原创）