Product
/
Packaging
National Park Playing Cards
/ About the project
A personal project turned small business, National Park Playing Cards is a product that I created in 2019, driven by my passion for the outdoors and love for the US National Parks. Since its inception, National Park Playing Cards has sold over 20,000 copies, in over 160 retail stores nationwide, including REI and 6 National Park Visitor Centers.
/ INDUSTRY
Nature
/ Credits
Client: Self-Initiated
Designer: Micah Hoang
Photography: Keaton Wong, Ethan Hosford
/ Year
2019
Card Design
Each suit maps to a US region: Diamonds to the Southwest, Spades to the Northwest, Clubs to the East, Hearts to the South. Card values rank by park popularity, from aces (most visited) down to twos (least).
The jokers depict two iconic native American animals, the American Black Bear and the American Elk.
Box Design
The box design features the National Park Service arrowhead logo design in a retro line drawn style, trees, mountains, and patterns. All elements are pressed with silver foil onto a matte box.
Story
Driven by my love for the outdoors and US National Parks, I launched a deck of cards in 2019 through a 30-day Kickstarter campaign. With an initial goal of $2,500 to produce 500 decks, we surpassed expectations, raising $6,341. This allowed us to print 1,000 decks, with 300 sent to our generous backers.
After selling out the first batch of decks, a custom website and an Etsy were created to fulfill direct online orders. Ads were placed on Google, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok directing users to the shop.
Shortly after, National Park Playing Cards reached the wholesale market, including over 150 boutique stores in 49 states. They are also sold at Canyonlands, Arches, Saguaro, Mount Rainier, Shenandoah Valley, and Zion National Park visitor centers.
In 2022, I became the youngest vendor at REI, at 18 years old.
