Paderno Power Blender
The brief for the kitchen appliances program was straightforward: outperform market leaders like Vitamix and Breville, while delivering higher margins at a more accessible price.
I began by benchmarking the industry leaders, blending smoothies, making soups, and crushing ice, then disassembling each appliance to understand the design and engineering behind their performance.
The design progressed from initial sketches to the final concept, refining form and function at each stage.
With the design direction set and technical specifications in hand we sourced industry-leading factories and partnered closely with them to finalize CAD models and for production.
Once the 3D prints were complete, I put them through rigorous testing, blending smoothies and crushing ice to ensure performance matched the design intent before starting tooling.
The finished product could pulverize ice in seconds, blend a perfectly smooth smoothie in under 30 seconds, and transform raw ingredients into hot soup in just five minutes. Thoughtful design choices, from form, UX and ergonomics to material selection, ensured it was as visually appealing and intuitive to use as it was powerful.
The result was a blender that not only met or exceeded all performance benchmarks but also delivered 1,500 bps of incremental margin compared to national brand competitors, proving that great design can drive both customer delight and strong business outcomes.
I led the project in close collaboration with a cross-functional team, bringing a collection of 19 appliances to market in 2019.
Each product earned the Tested for Life in Canada badge, achieved customer ratings above 4.5 stars, and delivered more than $12M in annual sales in the first year alone. The program established a strong foundation for multi-year growth in Canadian Tire’s owned brand portfolio.
For more information on the rest of the program see the Kitchen Appliance Product Summary
The blender became a flagship marketing vehicle for Paderno’s launch, featured prominently in influencer campaigns and across Paderno’s own channels. Its performance and design made it the hero product that showcased the brand’s credibility and innovation.
The blender was submitted to the Tested for Life in Canada panel, earning a 4.7-star rating and a 100% recommendation score from customers, validating both the design and performance against real-world use.
Influencer food writer and photographer Betty Shin Binon created recipes and content for Paderno on her site Stems and Forks