Nugget is in the business of play. The manufacturing company designs and develops furniture for kids that’s part-toy, part-decor. Nugget’s four-piece play couches are buildable, foldable, and—every parent’s dream—machine washable, and they come in whimsically named colors like Bamboo, Dewdrop, Mayberry, and Sweetpea. One look at their Instagram grid, and you’ll understand why kids and parents gravitate toward the ultra-popular brand. “Nuggets” are pillow forts made modern.
It takes a creative team to turn everyday life at home into bold play, and Nugget’s is just that. Imagination is infused into every aspect of the business, from product design to recruitment and email marketing, and the result is a unique company culture, to say the least.
Employees describe Nugget as caring, inclusive, progressive, innovative, and fun. And they all have their own stories about creativity to share. We reached out to six women employees at Nugget to find how a culture centered on imagination impacts them. This is how they innovate, brainstorm, and find inspiration in their own roles.
Looking to build something special? If working alongside thoughtful, talented people and contributing to an innovative and industry-leading company sounds like your sippy cup of tea, Nugget is just the place for you. Learn more about the company and what it’s like to work for this innovative children's brand at the link.
I imagine… a better hiring process
Talent Acquisition Specialist Tahjae Hayes says imagination isn’t always as intuitive in her role—but that doesn’t stop her from making the most of her creativity. “I actually get to use my imagination a lot. One specific example is when trying to identify ways to improve our hiring process. My philosophy is to shoot for the stars and think of everything I would do in a ‘perfect’ hiring world—the wilder the idea, the better. This mindset allows me not to limit myself and to constantly challenge our team to strive for better when crafting our ideal candidate experience.”
The results? “Nugget receives rave reviews about our interview process,” she says, “a critical factor that can be attributed to that is our willingness to think outside the box and not settle for what other companies may be doing.”
I imagine… a company culture that celebrates creativity
Becca Park, designer and illustrator at Nugget, says imagination is pivotal throughout the design process, so she needs a space where she can “create, build, and imagine with other creative minds to design beautiful work for [Nugget’s] amazing customers.”
Nugget delivers. In addition to doing their own creative work, Nugget’s team stays inspired by exploring the work of other creatives. Park points to Nugget’s 2023 Black Futures Campaign, which celebrated Black creativity. “From the exploration of the color palette to the visuals in all social platforms,” Park says the campaign was a source of inspiration and a reminder of “the importance of Black Futures through beautiful space visuals.”
I imagine… a team that always strives for more
Jordan Thomas, a customer experience specialist, says the constant focus on imagination pushes everyone at Nugget to raise the bar. “I’ve honestly never worked with such creative and talented people,” she says. “One thing that’s throughout the company culture is a desire to simply make things better. We're never complacent—we’re always looking for ways or things to improve.”
On her team, that means challenging the status quo. “We like shaking things up!” she says. “We have creative brainstorming sessions, we'll hop on Zoom to talk through new ideas, and we never stop having fun in the process.”
I imagine… a way to make work fun
Email Marketing Manager Kate Sokley says she was used to writing cut and dry promotional emails. That all changed when she started working for Nugget.
“Working for a kid's toy couch company, where imagination is the fifth integral piece of the couch, the plan for stereotypical emails doesn't fit,” she says. “The first email I was tasked with sending was ‘how to talk about our color Daybreak.’ I couldn't rely on my usual ways of: ‘Daybreak. It's a blue. You should buy it!’ Just another blue turned into creating an entire campaign around morning news, complete with little drawings over our photography of kids reading the paper. Something that could have been a cut and dry email about our product turned into its own little magic moment. And those moments have continued ever since!”
I imagine… a more playful way to pursue my passions
Alicia Renee Ball, a CMF (color, materials, finish) designer, says, like her coworkers, that she uses her imagination every day in her role at Nugget. “My work requires the act of imagining to formulate new ideas and concepts for our products,” she says. “I pair research with imagination to innovate new pathways to explore in the development of color, material and finishes.” Her department also uses imagination to decide when it’s a good time to release products and when to give employees the creative space to develop new product iterations.
For Ball, this imagining-all-the-time approach feeds her passions, which is why she chose Nugget in the first place. “I find it exciting to explore innovative approaches to open-ended play for children and wanted to continue to work in this pathway in my career,” she says. “It felt good to align with Nugget as a company and the owners are future-forward and innovative leaders and thinkers—so I also get to learn and expand what is possible just by being with the company.”
I imagine… out-of-the-box ways to bond with my peers
Production Coordinator Charmesha Williams says it’s Nugget’s imaginative approach to team bonding that inspires her to do her best work. “Nugget is always thinking of new things and new ways that will help the team, customers, and our community.”
For instance, the team recently took a field trip to the Marble Kids Museum, a hands-on kids museum in Raleigh, NC, to get the creative juices flowing. “That was the first time I had ever been. It was so much fun using my imagination the way I did as a kid,” Williams says.
