Sydney-based design studio Universal Favourite launched a new branding for US beauty brand Youthforia, whose mission is to make makeup more playful. To appeal to a Gen Z market, bored by the minimal aesthetic approach, Universal Favourite created a maximalist identity that is purposefully messy, uncurated and raw. Given the Gen Z direction of the brand, nailing the digital experience was key. The website, as well as all social media assets, need to both work together seamlessly and allow for flexibility to showcase a brand that’s constantly moving, evolving and flexing — much like its audience. To reflect the brand’s intention to let you flex your self-expression, Youthforia works with energetic shapes and stickers rolled out across packaging, product and digital touchpoints. The brand’s premise of having fun and playing around extends to its packaging. Each item comes in different colours, with different holders to choose from. “The magnetic pans designed into the suite allow users to click, combine, stack and arrange their Youthforia makeup to suit their mood — an idea also reflected in the logo. They can mix and match their product arrangements based on however they’re feeling that day” says Dari Israelstam, Founder & Creative Director at Universal Favourite.

By Josefine Karlsson and Ellen Ranebo on 19 May, 2021

Gustaf and Linnea want to contribute to a more sustainable future for wild pollinators which is crucial for our ecosystem. Instead of using the typical plastic packaging for their lip balms they have chosen to use recyclable push up paper tubes to decrease the usage of plastic. The lip balm comes in four different scents and the packaging for each scent has its own unique decorative illustration representing the Swedish Flora. The design is created by Outhouse Gravitz & Kusinerna on Gotland. You can buy the product from Bra Sak.

Product photos: Bra Sak and Gustaf & Linnea

By Josefine Karlsson and Ellen Ranebo on 29 April, 2021

Foodhills, based in southern Sweden, is a catalyst working for circular food production. Foodhills, owned by Backahill, Lantmännen and Healthrunner, helps companies develop and test their food, making sure production is according to sustainable standards. This limited edition sorbet is produced by da Aldo in collaboration with Foodhills. The product is made from green peas grown in southern Sweden (Skåne & Halland). Designed by Björn Berglund.

Editors: Josefine Karlsson & Ellen Ranebo, Broby Grafiska

By Josefine Karlsson and Ellen Ranebo on 22 April, 2021 In foodhills, Innovation, pea, sorbet

With a rejuvenated brand design, Mizone is strengthening its market-leading position in the Chinese functional beverage category. Danish brand and design agency Everland helped relaunch China’s fifth-largest beverage brand, targeting the next generation of Chinese consumers.

Now Mizone, China’s fifth largest non-alcoholic beverage brand and owned by Danone, is ready with a rejuvenated brand experience that speaks directly to the China of tomorrow. With help from Danish design agency Everland, the brand has been repositioned and redesigned to reflect a new product formulation and the bold, brave and independant spirit of the Post 95’ers.

“Mizone translates “my pulse” in Chinese. The idea of individuality and a pulsating flow became a central concept when working on relaunching one of China’s largest brands. The pulse became the visual common thread, symbolising the thriving city and human drive, explains Calle Larsson, Creative Director & Partner at Everland.

In close collaboration with Danone China, Everland developed the visual identity for the entire product line, and are currently working on new innovations, which will further help strengthen Mizone’s new position in the Chinese market.

The new design also reinforces Mizone as leader of the functional beverages category. A niche the brand defined when it launched in 2003. Design agency Everland has the privilege of working with Danone across the globe. For the last year, they have worked with the French FMCG giant in Denmark, France, Poland, Great Britain, Indonesia and China.

By Kristina de Verdier on 5 June, 2020

To showcase their Scandinavian expertise, SAS asked Sweden’s best bar, Tjoget, to produce pre-mixed drinks for aircraft use. The drinks needed a package. With the same illustrative way that is recognizable from the bar, each drink’s story is told in the most complicated way possible, all with the aim of at 10,000 meters altitude, helping the traveler to pass the time with more than the contents of the bottle. In addition, the shape of the bottle with its prismas invites you to turn it in the light and its illustrations to turn it in the darkness of the head. Designed by Stockholm based Open Studio.

By Kristina de Verdier on 3 April, 2020

Designed by Scandinavian branding & design agency Bold. The smart and sustainable New Nordic by SAS Cube has been transformed with a design that minimises the use of oil-based plastic, saving up to 51 tons of plastic per year. The former inside plastic container has been replaced by an FSC-approved paper with a plastic coating and a plastic lid made from organic plant-based plastic. Not only that, the lightweight packaging will lessen the onboard mass balancing the carbon impact; an important contributing factor to sustainable travel.

“For the packaging design concept, we’ve taken the proud wordmark as a starting point: by zooming in on typographic details, we create intriguing crops that can be applied to the packaging. These crops can be recombined in many surprising ways, just like the food ingredients chefs have selected for the onboard menus. The design elements developed for SAS are inspired by how chefs work with food. Choosing the best parts of each raw material and allowing them to interact. The packaging material used is natural craft paper, with embossed stamps that signify different dishes and graphic shapes to distinguish menu items and condiments.”

By Kristina de Verdier on 4 March, 2020 In packaging design, Paper, product experience, renewable, SAS, sustainable

Phil the bottle is the City Bottle that chooses free water, offered by the drinking fountains to be found in cities, in parks and gardens, in squares and along the streets. On the back of each bottle there is a list of the city’s drinking fountain locations, where it can be filled. Design: Emanuele Pizzolorusso Client: Palomar

By Kristina de Verdier on 11 September, 2019

Seedlip is a Nature Company on a mission to change the way the world drinks with the highest quality non-alcoholic options. Pearlfisher has now created the identity and detailed packaging design for a range of non-alcoholic aperitifs.

“Inspired by 17th century herbal remedies as well as lepidopterology (the study of moths and butterflies), we built a refined ecosystem for Æcorn Aperitif’s identity, brand world and packaging design to develop within. Traditionally an alcoholic beverage, the before-dinner drink has long been understood to increase our enjoyment of food. Æcorn Aperitifs makes way for exciting, new options and extends the backbar beyond wine, spritzes and vermouth with three varietals – Dry, Bitter and Aromatic.”

“We took all the elements provided by the Æcorn team and wove them into a story of duality – the levity of the butterfly and the foundation of the oak, a key ingredient of each varietal. The team at Æcorn shared an aphorism that says, “From small acorns, mighty oaks grow”. This set us on the path for the brand to cover new territory as a nature company, establish brand world touch-points and breathe new life into the aperitif drinking occasion. Designed by Pearlfisher for Seedlip.”

By Kristina de Verdier on 18 June, 2019 In Design, experience, non-alcoholic, packaging

Burger King has released ‘Real Meals’, a range of meal boxes that come in various emotions and therefore sit in opposition to McDonald’s renowned Happy Meal. The chain is asking diners to order a meal based on their current mood, whether that is Pissed, Blue, Salty, YAAAS or DGAF.Burger King takes aim at McDonald’s with ‘Real Meals’. Burger King is taking creating on one of the most iconic fast-food meals of all time in aide of a good cause. The campaign is part of a collaboration with Mental Health America to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Month. The fast-food chain has even created a new hashtag, #feelyourway, to go along with the campaign that riffs off its regular catch-phrase of ‘have it your way’.

By Kristina de Verdier on 7 May, 2019

Oat-based products have emerged as one of the most popular and disruptive trends on the market. At the forefront of this trend is Yosa, a brand that’s harnessed the oaty goodness and power of oats for the last 20 years. Recently acquired by one of the largest corporations in the Finnish food and drink industry, Fazer approached Pearlfisher to refresh Yosa’s expression and make it stand out in what is becoming a crowded space.

“Our design counteracts the cold cues of the category and celebrates the greatness and deliciousness of Fazer Yosa products. Illustrating Yosa as a plant, the Y logo signifies where everything related to the brand flourishes from whilst the strapline – We Know Oats – reinforces the brand’s heritage and expertise. Embodying both its pioneering spirit and rich heritage we focused the Fazer Yosa brand story on the bigger potential oats have as part of a healthy lifestyle.”

By Kristina de Verdier on 26 February, 2019 In beverage, brand, Design, fazer, Food, packaging, pearlfisher, yosa

Take Care – a new concept Open Studio Stockholm has developed together with H&M. It’s a step towards a more sustainable future where H&M inspire the customers to take better care of their fashion favorites. Repair, remake and refresh!

In all clothes there is a patch with care instructions that tells you how to wash (or not), iron and dry the garment. The care instruction’s aesthetics became our packaging idea. Form, typography and symbols have been applied to enhance each packaging so that each product, in the double sense, stands out on the shelf. Take Care’s product range includes everything from detergent, stain remover and sneaker wipes to sewing kit and patches that can repair holes and hide bad stains. The launch started in the summer of 2018 when the concept was rolled out in Germany, closely followed by France, England, Norway and Sweden.

By Kristina de Verdier on 5 February, 2019

A creative collaboration between UK paper maker, James Cropper and London-based studio Foldability. Through the shared medium of paper, James Cropper company approached Foldability to help create a new look for the James Cropper brand. The result was crafted paper sculptures which use the principles of origami and geometry. The creative shows four paper sculptures which include over 10,000 lines in total, each one folded individually by hand before being shot with a 50-mega pixel camera. “I wanted to create pieces with interesting geometric patterns that could work at the largest scale and reflect the precision and craftsmanship that James Cropper is known for” says Kyla.

“I came across Kyla’s work on Instagram and it immediately struck a chord”, explains chairman Mark Cropper. “Her work transforms a flat sheet into something dynamic and multi-dimensional that redefines the material. It is simple, but beautiful and completely authentic. The fit was perfect”. Following a trip to Kyla’s East End studio to find out more, Mark commissioned her to create four paper sculptures, each to be made from Kendal Green paper, James Cropper’s signature colour.

“Every fold and crease is visible, even the texture of the paper itself”, adds Mark. “The final result is fabulous. A dedication to quality, and every sheet of material tailor-made.  The three dimensionality is also very fitting, providing a link with our newest paper product Colourform, a fully recyclable alternative to moulded plastic”. At the heart of the project is the company’s Kendal Green paper, a bespoke colour based on a woollen cloth the area was famous for in the middle ages.  The original pigments used to dye the cloth were identified and the colour brought back to life in James Cropper’s colour lab.

You can see a video of the process here.

By Kristina de Verdier on 19 December, 2018 In Design, folding, geometry, Paper, truck

A pop-up restaurant that is built from recycled food packaging and that composts all of its leftovers has been set up at the WantedDesign Manhattan fair. Addressing leftovers in the hospitality industry, Zero Waste Bistro sources and serves sustainability. Durat, a polyester composite with a granular texture, used for table and serving items. Walls crafted from Tetra Pak packaging and a communal dining table and table set made with recycled and fully recyclable plastic. All food scraps the bistro produced is composted and turned into organic mulch for local farmers.

By Kristina de Verdier on 10 October, 2018

Apparel company Known Supply celebrates the people who make clothing by putting a tag with the labourer’s signature. “We believe our world would look much different if shoppers could know the people who made their garments. Those items would be cherished, their value signifying so much more than ‘another t-shirt’”. Known Supply makes organic cotton T-shirts and other basics in ethically minded factories located in Peru, Uganda, and India.

By Kristina de Verdier on 1 October, 2018 In apparel, Design, fashion, people, production, transparency