Industrial Design Case Study: Prime Studio's Flagship Razor for Dorco

This ID case study comes to us from NYC-based Prime Studio.

DORCO, the leading South Korean shaving brand, approached Prime Studio with an ambitious vision: create a new flagship razor that would elevate their brand on the global stage. This wasn't merely about designing another shaving tool—it was about establishing a comprehensive brand identity that would resonate across diverse international markets while highlighting groundbreaking technology.

WHAT WE DID

Brand Positioning, Industrial Design

DESIGN TEAM

Stuart Harvey Lee, Mark Dorsey, Adrian Candela

BRIEF

Imagine the Future

The brief we received from DORCO was very open. Their goal was simply to develop a flagship product that would position DORCO globally for the next decade. However, they also intended to create a new brand for this product so the combination of developing a compelling positioning and then translating that vision into product through industrial design was a great fit for our capabilities at Prime Studio.

The razor market has evolved dramatically over the past decade, with disruption coming from direct-to-consumer brands and growing consumer demand for products that balance performance, aesthetics, and value. Our extensive experience with category-defining brands like Harry's and Hanni taught us that success requires more than technical innovation—it demands a compelling brand story that connects with consumers on an emotional level.

PROCESS

Sharpening Ideas, Shaping Design

Our development journey began by developing detailed customer personas across Europe, Asia, and North America. These weren't just demographic profiles—they represented holistic portraits of potential users, including their lifestyles, values, and affinity brands.

We made sure that each regional persona exhibited distinct preferences:

European consumers showed stronger inclinations toward sustainable materials and functional aesthetics.

Asian markets valued technological innovation and enhanced styling.

American consumers prioritized performance and value, with growing interest in premium experiences that didn't feel pretentious.

These personas became our north star, allowing us to benchmark both design concepts and CMF (Color, Material, Finish) choices against the expectations of our target audiences throughout the entire development process.

"We looked for an agency that was creative, innovative, and understood the importance of large-scale manufacturing. Prime Studio made sure that it fully understood our direction, intention, target audience, and brand plans, which gave us trust. The most impressive part was that Prime was consistent in the directional approach from start to finish." --Steve Hong, CEO, DORCO

With our personas established, we moved to visual positioning—creating the foundation not just for our design work but for DORCO's global brand expression. We developed three distinct conceptual directions:

1. Crafted with Care – Emphasizing premium materials, exposed details, and honest aesthetics.

2. Simple Complexity – Finding beauty in the balance between clean styling and sophisticated engineering.

3. Lightness of Touch – Creating a product that felt effortless, both visually and in the hand.

This phase proved particularly valuable as we built a working relationship with DORCO's international team, where English wasn't the first language for many stakeholders.

Our visual approaches created a universal language for communicating design intent.

Once we had team buy-in, we moved into developing a wide range of initial concepts which were presented as 2D renders.

Our vision for the brand coalesced around creating a true tool for shaving—not just another razor. We drew inspiration from the precise details found on premium hand tools, exposed connector details, and the tactile qualities of different materials. Sustainability became a key consideration, leading us to explore the integration of materials like cork into the design.

Our exploration began with nine distinct concepts, each approaching the balance of form, function, and brand expression differently. Through collaborative review with DORCO's team and testing against our persona benchmarks, we narrowed to three lead directions.

Interestingly, the final selection included one concept from each designer on our project team—a demonstration of the diverse thinking we brought to the challenge.

We purposefully pushed the boundaries of manufacturing with several concepts—including a distinctive side-to-side die-cast sandwich construction that created both visual interest and structural integrity. All ideas were qualified with DORCO's engineering department for feasibility.

What impressed us most was DORCO's remarkable openness to our suggestions. Their attitude consistently reflected their commitment to design excellence: if that was our vision, they would figure out how to make it happen. This collaborative spirit allowed us to pursue truly innovative approaches rather than defaulting to established manufacturing methods.

As concepts progressed, we developed weighted prototypes to evaluate ergonomics and balance—critical factors for a tool used in wet environments that requires precise control. These physical models allowed us to refine the handle's form and weight distribution, ensuring the final product would feel as good as it looked.

CMF development became a major focus in the latter stages of the project. We explored and presented numerous options—from sophisticated metallic finishes to innovative sustainable materials—all while benchmarking back to our target personas.

Our material explorations included:

- Premium metal finishing techniques

- Incorporating sustainable composite materials, including cork, wood composite, and recycled plastic.

- Finely textured surfaces that enhanced both grip and visual appeal

- Signature elements that highlighted the product's sophisticated engineering and multi-flex head technology.

The final, flexible CMF strategy balanced global appeal with production considerations, creating a cohesive yet adaptable visual language for the brand.

THE RESULT

Next Gen Razor is here

The final design solution embodies our "tool for shaving" vision—a razor that feels purposeful, premium, and engineered for performance without sacrificing aesthetic appeal.

The handle features subtle organic contours that provide both ergonomic benefits and visual distinction. We leveraged advanced manufacturing techniques to create seamless transitions between materials, allowing for both the premium feel our personas demanded and the durability required of a daily-use product.

We celebrated DORCO's multi-flex technology, making it a visual centerpiece. The connection between handle and cartridge features a distinctive pivot mechanism that communicates precision engineering while providing visual cues about the product's functionality. This approach transforms a technical innovation into a defining design element.

The final CMF solution chosen by DORCO strikes a balance between premium perception and functional performance, with regional variations that respect cultural preferences while maintaining brand coherence. Sustainability considerations influenced material selections throughout, supporting DORCO's commitment to responsible manufacturing.

Dorco Sleek launched in South Korea in late 2024 and is currently rolling out globally. Early results indicate:

- A strong market reception across all target regions.

- Consumer praise for both the product's design language and performance.

- Establishment of a cohesive design identity that will inform DORCO's future product development.

More importantly, the project established a foundation for DORCO's continued brand evolution, demonstrating how thoughtful design can transcend language barriers and cultural differences to create products with truly global appeal.

Sleek's brand identity was crafted by The Bread and Butter, reflecting a modern and forward-thinking design approach.

Summary

Prime Studio worked closely with the internal team at DORCO to develop the positioning and design of their next-generation flagship men's razor product, Sleek. The razor features DORCO's proprietary multi-flex head technology, along with many other technical innovations and it was Prime Studio's responsibility to develop a product design which showcased this and was suitable for the introduction to the global market.

You can see more of Prime's work here.