Ask any food producer what their branding and packaging priorities are, and the response is unanimous: to stand out on a retailer’s shelves.
But from an actual design standpoint, the execution of this goal varies surprisingly little.
There’s cautiously different, or same-same-but-louder.
This was our [The Offices'] overwhelming perception following a field trip to the Fine Foods Australia trade show in September.
We should mention that food production is big business in Australia.
Not only are Australians spending more on quality food than in the past, our overseas customers are too.
Food production was tipped in a recent Deloitte report as a sector to watch for the next 20 years; and according to an infographic at the September fair, Australian food exports now exceed imports by 50 per cent.
Growing health awareness, demand for organics, rising food allergies and intolerances, and interest in food provenance is making for some interesting market conditions.
With a little more experimentation, these will in turn continue to shape the branding and design landscape.
Of course, the best packaging will always be supported by bang on-brand voice, marketing and digital efforts.
Design starting-points for food brands
We’ve seen a thing or two in our time, and are fully aware of the design conventions unique to the food production business.
First off, packaging needs to look as though it actually contains something tasty.
Cue vibrant, drool-inducing photography. Not chiaroscuro or lifestyle photography.
Secondly, it needs to state what’s inside.
This gets complicated when you take labelling restrictions into account.
Some packaging ends up clogged with a bunch of tasty synonyms, to compensate for bulking agents or preservatives that alter their product category (think dairy desserts against ice creams, or fruit drinks versus juices).
And third, the design needs to state how it’s different from 15 near-identical competitors, in one single eyeball’s sweep of a supermarket shelf.
Tall order, we agree.
With all that in mind, here’s how the big names and newcomers alike have been differentiating their brands in 2017 when it comes to package design.
The majors: More is more
Packaging design among the major brands remains conservative at best, drawing on decades-old stylistic touches. We felt that repetition abounds, making it hard to tell one potato crisp, orange juice or dairy brand from another. Yet this is what made the majors look like – well – majors.
Busy primary and secondary colour palettes are generally the go (blue! green! yellow!), with luxurious brands always calling for black, gold or silver.
Clutter is de rigeur. Add a swoosh, a gradient, a starburst, a ribbon and a gloss effect – all on the one package if possible. Plus at least three types of font. And a swirling marbled background, just because they can.
Photography is either bright and airy or hyper-retouched, with the food product having the perfection of a Fabergé jewel. Art direction for hand-finished foods always involves rustic chopping blocks, while your more artificial foods call for shiny, colourful backgrounds.
Conclusion: if you want to reach the everyman, just throw as many familiar visuals at them as you can. Bingo!
The niche brands: Pure and virtuous
A tiny number of the indie brands had a fun persona, like Nudie juices or Alter Eco chocolates, where the playful tone extends right down to the most itty-bitty copy on each pack. (Two of our own fave clients, Pat and Stick’s ice cream and Dr Kim’s kimchi, have a memorably fun personality).
But for the most part, we were seeing branding with overtones of old-school, purity, health and virtue among the niche producers. Here’s how they’re doing it.
1. Heritage – few styles say ‘authenticity’ in the same way that a vintage typeface, crest, stamp or embossing can, with many examples among the older smallgoods, gelato and coffee companies. By the way, ‘heritage’ isn’t always Euro in nature, as seen by the Thai-inspired Pok Pok Som range of drinking vinegars.
2. Eco-luxe – real sustainable food is a real luxury in a day and age of fast everything. Food brands are bringing this notion to life with recycled paper, forest greens and earthy browns for virtue factor, plus metallics and embossing for luxury. Hawaiian newcomer Manoa Chocolates does all of the above.
3. Colour block – we’re still loving this trend, where the palette is so minimal the overall effect is actually a big radiant burst of colour. Not a bad technique for ensuring shelf presence, as the folks from Cocofrio and Soda Press Co are proving.
4. White-out – in direct contrast to colour blocks (above), we’re loving the decluttered white-on-white look. These brands appear to claim extra shelf space, simply by looking like they’re not there. Coyo and Almo Milk do this beautifully, especially since purity and whiteness is exactly what you’ll find inside each pack.
5. Hand-rendered – flat minimal graphics and typefaces are, like, so five years ago. Hand-drawn is the new prestige touch, either in a monoline finish for a naïve effect, or layered for a nuanced arty effect. Manly Spirits Co is an example of the former, and Karma Cola an example of the latter.
6. Ye olde corner shoppe – personally we’re kinda sick of this look, which started in the UK around 10 years ago and which we’ve dubbed the hipster graphic look. It’s achieved through charmingly jumbled fonts and shredded inks, and is mostly big with cafés, boutique beers and bakeries. Five Senses Coffee interprets the look nicely with a more tidied-up pairing of different fonts, and some illustrations, which should last them until well after the trend subsides.
Conclusion: If you’re a niche brand, develop a brand identity as far removed from the majors as possible, with niche design and production techniques to match. Your target audience totally gets it.
Stephanie Oley is a partner at Sydney-based independent design agency, The Offices, which specialises in making brands stand out – from startups or multinationals.
