Lancaster, PA — Visual Retail + Design Consultancy
I help brands show up better in the spaces where they meet their customers — from concept to execution, at any scale.
Forward Focus
Three areas where my experience is most concentrated right now — and where I'm actively taking on new projects.
Helping emerging cannabis brands build retail environments that convert — from fixture strategy and planogram development to compliant, brand-forward in-store experiences that earn the customer's trust at the shelf.
Early-stage brand consulting for consumer packaged goods companies entering retail — channel strategy, retail readiness, packaging feedback, and go-to-market positioning for brands that need to move fast and land strong.
Partnering with established retailers to modernize their physical environments — updating visual merchandising systems, refreshing floor layouts, and realigning brand expression at scale without losing operational efficiency.
Selected Work
From commercial interiors and brand launches to national retail rollouts — a look at what Project Elliott actually builds.
The Brief
Great Dane needed a flagship innovation hall that lived up to 120 years of brand heritage — welcoming, functional, and unmistakably them. The environment had to work as reception, collaboration hub, and brand statement all at once.
What I Did
The Brief
DSG was looking to launch their Men's Private Label, VRST, but needed direction on how to bring the space to life — not just conceptually but functionally as well. Starting with inspiration for the collection, I turned to street and city elements to draw from a commuter's perspective. From material selection to intentional educational wayfinding, this was a full 360 project brought to life in over 450 doors and counting.
What I Did
The Brief
A Japandi-inspired coffee and tea house, designed from scratch. The client needed a full spatial vision — something that could anchor an investor presentation and communicate the brand's ethos before a single wall went up.
What I Did
The Brief
CTRL needed a display system that could flex between tradeshow floor and in-store retail without losing brand identity. Premium feel, tight production timeline — and it had to work in two formats.
What I Did
Full Portfolio
Strategy decks, store rollouts, renderings — available in two formats.
More Work
A sampling of other brands across retail, hospitality, and commercial environments.
Experiential Design · Lancaster, PA
Concept and ideation for Chellas' N Queen St venue — positioning the space as Lancaster's "third place" through community-centered design and vibrant cultural storytelling.
Retail Strategy · In-Store Design
Complete vitamin and supplement wall refresh — fixture strategy, category flow, planogram, and visual hierarchy redesign. Vitamins & Herbs up 42% post-rollout.
Visual Merchandising · National Retail
Full endcap design and planogram system for national rollout across Walmart, HEB, and other major chains — 3D renders through to field execution.
What I Do
I'm not a full-service agency. I'm a single operator with deep expertise across the disciplines that matter most when a brand needs to show up in a physical space — and I move fast.
01
Where to start, how to sequence it, what actually moves the needle. I've worked with Fortune 500 brands and neighborhood startups.
02
From blank page to clear direction. I build alignment quickly so projects move without months of back-and-forth.
03
High-quality 3D renders that tell the story before anything gets built — useful for approvals, marketing, and investors.
04
Shelf presence, endcap design, planograms, field execution. I know how retail works — from the brief to the store floor.
05
Space planning, FFE, art direction, and customer experience design — tailored to how your end user moves through the space.
About
I'm Jay Tran — visual retail strategist, merchandising expert, and the founder of Project Elliott. Based in Lancaster, PA, I've spent 25+ years figuring out how brands and spaces can work harder for the people inside them.
My day job puts me inside large organizations — working cross-functionally with sales, operations, marketing, and creative teams to bring brands to life at retail. Project Elliott is where I apply that same discipline independently, for clients who need a fast, thoughtful partner that actually gets things done.
I'm not a big team. That's intentional. You get direct access to the thinking and the doing — no account manager in the middle, no brief getting lost between floors.
The details make all the difference — from the way I work to the work I create.
What I'm Building
Project Elliott isn't static. Here's a glimpse at where the focus is right now — some specific, some still taking shape.
Active
Sharpening the consultancy's positioning and expanding into new categories. More environmental design, deeper retail strategy partnerships.
In Development
Exploring a new vertical at the intersection of hospitality design and retail experience. More soon — but it's the thing I'm most focused on right now.
Ongoing
Building a trusted circle of fabricators, photographers, and creative partners — so I can field bigger projects without losing the agility that makes Project Elliott useful.
