THE FABRIC IMAGES® EXPERIENTIAL DESIGN PROCESS
Through collaboration and exploration, we're constantly pushing the boundaries of our materials and capabilities to bring life to our customers' vision.
What Makes Our Experiential Design Process Different
At Fabric Images®, our experiential design process is built around one central idea: meaningful environments are created when experience is treated as the primary design driver, not an afterthought. Every project begins with understanding how people will move through, interact with, and remember a space. This mindset shapes how we approach form, material, structure, and storytelling from the earliest stages.
Our experiential design methodology differs from traditional workflows because it is not limited to producing a visual concept or a finished object. Instead, it focuses on shaping environments that communicate purpose and evoke response. We work to translate brand intent, spatial context, and project goals into physical solutions that feel intentional and cohesive, regardless of scale or setting.
Rather than separating design and production into distinct phases, we operate through a design-to-fabrication process that aligns creative vision with real-world build considerations from the start. When fabrication realities are part of early conversations, ideas can evolve without compromise, and projects move forward with clarity.
Our concept to installation workflow supports teams through every stage, from early ideation to final installation. This approach allows us to anticipate structural requirements, material behavior, and installation logistics while design decisions are still flexible.
Throughout experiential project planning, we prioritize a collaborative design process that brings clients, designers, and fabricators into alignment. We work as a partner rather than a handoff point, combining design-assist manufacturing with integrated design and fabrication to develop solutions that are expressive, efficient, and build-ready.
Visual communication also plays a key role. Through thoughtful graphic design, materials, and spatial composition, we help environments communicate story and identity in a tangible way. These elements come together within an immersive environment design process that considers not only aesthetics, but also how light, texture, scale, and movement influence perception.
This holistic design process allows us to support spatial storytelling across a range of applications, from branded interiors to live experiences. Each project is approached as a unique opportunity for custom environment development, shaped by its audience, purpose, and physical context.
By staying focused on experience first, we help create spaces that resonate long after installation.
Our Approach
To understand our customer’s vision, we organize our
foundational process into three key steps.
Understanding – We believe in having a full understanding of design intent in order to bring the vision to life. We look, not only at the design solution, but the space in which it will live and the brand it will represent. By absorbing the details and opening the door for collaboration, we come to understand the vision and can begin transforming it to reality.
Research – Our subject matter experts brainstorm tactics to achieve design intent with an understanding of budget requirements. We call this “reality through research,” which involved testing, prototyping, and playing. Keeping in context with the vision, we determine material options and finishing techniques that will achieve the vision.
Engineering and design – In this step we begin to fulfill the design intent from an aesthetic and functional perspective, considering structural integrity and installation requirements.
Design Studios
Fabric Images is comprised of three studios, each focused on
the unique needs of the markets they serve.
Interior acoustic décor products
and custom solutions for beautiful,
acoustically comfortable spaces.
Experiential fabric architecture and
custom solutions for installations,
exhibits, and events.
Custom material solutions that
support the brand story in a
physical retail space.
Collaboration Across Studios and Disciplines
Our work is powered by collaboration across studios and specialties, unified by one shared approach. At Fabric Images, a multidisciplinary design team applies the same core process across Fi™ Interiors, Fi™ Retail, and Fi™ Live Events, adapting execution based on the demands of each environment.
This structure allows us to move fluidly through the architectural fabrication process, bringing together designers, engineers, and fabricators early and often. By engaging experience designers alongside technical experts, we develop solutions that balance creativity with constructability rather than addressing those priorities separately.
Early exploration often includes prototyping for experiential design, which allows teams to test scale, materials, and interaction before committing to full production. Prototypes help clarify how an idea performs in physical space, informing decisions that affect both form and function. This hands-on approach supports stronger outcomes and more confident execution.
Across projects, our work is guided by designers who understand how people perceive and move through environments. Each experience designer contributes insight into how form, material, and structure shape engagement, helping the final result align with the intended experience. This perspective allows us to create environments that feel cohesive and intentional rather than assembled from disconnected elements.
Our teams collaborate closely with external designers, architects, and brand partners, adapting our role to complement existing creative leadership. Through open dialogue and shared problem-solving, we develop solutions that respect design intent while addressing fabrication and installation realities.
This cross-studio design collaboration is especially valuable on projects that span multiple environments or require consistent expression across locations. By working within one integrated framework, we deliver engineered design solutions that translate across interiors, retail spaces, and live events – even when timelines, formats, or contexts differ.
Frequently Asked Questions
The experiential design process is a collaborative approach centered on shaping how a space is experienced rather than simply how it appears. At Fabric Images, this process focuses on aligning design intent, spatial context, and fabrication strategy so environments communicate purpose, emotion, and identity. By considering human experience from the start, projects move forward with clearer direction and stronger outcomes.
We can begin with anything from a loose concept to a defined vision, but early clarity helps guide the process. Sharing information about project goals, intended audience, space conditions, timeline expectations, budget range, and brand direction allows us to recommend materials and approaches that fit both creative and practical needs. Performance considerations such as acoustics, lighting impact, durability, or reusability also help shape the solution.
We are most effective when involved early, while geometry, materials, and integration decisions remain flexible. Early collaboration allows us to confirm what is buildable, how elements will install, and how to align design ambition with available resources. While we can support fabrication-only scopes later in a project, early involvement typically leads to cleaner execution and fewer tradeoffs.
Our core process remains consistent across all markets, while priorities shift based on context. Interior projects often emphasize comfort, material integration, and long-term performance. Live events focus on scale, assembly, and efficient installation. Retail environments prioritize durability, storytelling, and brand consistency. When projects span multiple environments, cross-studio coordination helps maintain alignment across every touchpoint.
By aligning creative intent with feasibility early, we help teams avoid late-stage changes that impact timing or cost. Our integrated capabilities allow decisions about materials, finishes, and construction methods to happen in parallel rather than in sequence. When constraints evolve, we collaborate on practical adjustments that preserve the intended experience while keeping projects moving forward.
THE BEST PLACE TO WORK
Fabric Images, Inc.® was built on the foundation of making it the best place to work. This spirit lends to the freedom of exploration and development on both a personal and professional level and fosters expert knowledge growth and building that is instrumental in bringing life to your vision.
This spirit of ingenuity has evolved to support the company mindset of “nothing is impossible, we just have to figure out a way”. This determined, can-do approach has led to the success of the seemingly impossible.
We bring life to remarkable installations and projects.
It is through exploration and pushing the limits of what tension fabric, frame and materials can do, that we have built upon the foundation of making Fabric Images the best place to work and have established experts in materials, metal, design and engineering. Our culture supports the act of bringing life to your vision.
Our Approach
We believe in having a full understanding of design intent in order to bring the vision to life. We look, not only the at design solution, but the space in which it will live and the brand it will represent. By absorbing these details and opening the door for collaboration, we come to understand the vision and can begin transforming it to reality.
Our subject matter experts brainstorm tactics to achieve design intent with the understanding of budget requirements. We call this “reality through research”, which involves testing, prototyping and playing. Keeping in context with the vision, we determine material options and finishing techniques that will achieve the vision.
In this step we begin to fulfill the design intent from an aesthetic and functional perspective, considering structural integrity and installation requirements.
Our Studios
We tailor our approach within each of our Studios to provide the expertise and support needed, along with specialized product offerings.
The Fi Interiors™ studio designs and manufactures interior architecture décor products and custom design solutions that incorporate metal, fabric, printed graphics, acoustics, and a host of additional materials.
The Fi Retail™ studio partners with retail brands to creatively express their story through compelling installations and brand experiences.
The Fi Live Events™ studio is a creative, strategic, and collaborative manufacturer providing custom fabric architectural and material solutions used within tradeshows, events and brand activations.