r W
Creating a relevant brand identity within a well-established
category is tough enough. But actually motivating a
new consumer behavior and conjuring up a new brand
experience is one of branding’s greatest challenges. Yes,
there is a lot going on here and your eye bounces between
elements. The silhouettes and icon illustrations are both
somewhat juvenile and generic. And I’m curious about
the choice to break the pattern of using a complementing
color palette by using green cartons against peppermint’s
strongly contrasting blue canisters. But I’m drawn to the
sweeping, die-cut carton, the simple logo, and specifically
the iconic way that the package teaches the consumers how
and when to use the product.
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r W
I don’t read Cyrillic script, so I’m not quite sure if my
comments are completely accurate. However, I can imagine
that this identity’s primary element, its typeface, might
possibly detract from the desired brand experience. Even
if it is immediately readable (which I question), the type is
heavy, jagged, pointed, and sharp—not what I’d imagine
the consumer is looking for in a cosmetic skin care brand.
I’m more concerned about the brand colors. The black
and white are a nice contrast, but the purple seems garish
in comparison. Perhaps a silver or gray might have been
more in keeping with the brand profile and still have been
as distinctive.
S W
There is something quite lovely about the matte finish on
the tubes and the reflective satin finish of the elegant leaf.
The jagged brand name is difficult to read, which, in and
of itself, isn’t as bothersome as how it interacts with the
leaf. Contrasts of sharp and smooth can work to create an
interesting tension; however, the balance of each has to be
just right. In this case, the jagged script and the smooth leaf
are essentially the same mass, fighting for the same space.
Hence, they don’t feel cohesive.
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r W
The strategy behind this brand is interesting. I much prefer
“anyware” as the brand name. It says it all. I certainly like
the visual allusion that the laptop structure brings to the
brand. It nicely houses all the well-designed literature.
Here’s my only concern: Look how much packaging it takes
to brand a tiny little thumb drive! We as designers need to
lead the cause for sustainability. Besides building materials,
packaging is the single largest contributor to solid waste,
and our planet is already overflowing with it. And it’s our
fault! While I like the allusion of the laptop, why not make
the outer structure into something that can be repurposed
and reused again and again? Make its afterlife relevant to
the brand experience and you’ll win big.
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r W
Does every package need to be well-crafted and its every
element well-considered? Isn’t it enough for some products
just to get the information across? Great designers prove
over and over again that even the most mundane and
functional of products can be elevated and made more
valuable by effective design. This specific package actually
makes the product feel cheaper. There is high romance and
emotional indulgence in a proper bath. Own that experience
and you can charge twice the price for this product.
S W
This is so difficult...if I saw this in a big box store, would I be
attracted to the package? Would it make me think I needed
a new tub spout? No. If I were looking for a new tub spout,
would the package dissuade me from purchasing this? No,
not if I liked the spout. But then I have to ask, would I pick
this over something with more unique category packaging?
Definitely no. Even in commodity products like this, the
package design is important. I can’t help but wonder: Do
we really need to see the soft photo of the spout in action?
I think we understand how the spout works, so this image
only adds clutter.
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S W
Where to begin? There are so many beautiful elements
of this package and others that merely get in the way.
The package and structure are stunning, and the graphic
patterns enhance the form perfectly. The designer should
have stopped there. The typography is heavy-handed and
cold, the hangtag gets in the way of the silhouette, and I
would have preferred it without the fish icon—the wave
pattern says enough.
r W
This big brand identity has almost every visual cliché going
for it, yet somehow they all work in concert, specifically for
the mass class of trade. Wishbone may never be a super
premium brand and so dressing it up in a sophisticated
design will never be authentic. Rather, the oval shape—
reinforcing the logo icon—creates the age-old, hard-hitting
“bull’s eye” that targets your attention to the flavor and the
food. The photography lacks luster and there is awkward
spacing in some of the letter forms. There is a very 1990s
reliance on Photoshop and Illustrator tools with all the
blended backgrounds, faceted shapes, and dimensional
swirls. There are too many type faces in play and none of
them are distinct. And because of the heavy colors, there is
little that communicates “light” or “better for you.” And yet,
I bet there’s a lot of Wishbone Light being sold out there and
this identity just might speak to this brand’s loyal “grab and
go” core target.
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r W
A great design architecture is consistent yet differentiates
all the products within it. Although the images created
for this icon-driven architecture look like they come
from different sources, at least they unify the brand.
What concerns me most is the designer’s choice to use
a photograph of sea stones on only one package. Why?
Designers must be disciplined and their work extendable
so that there is no need to change the brand tool palette
at random.
S W
There are many really nice elements to this package;
unfortunately, the choice of color for the label background
kills everything for me. I wonder if the intent was to “make
it look like kraft paper,” but the glossy fi nish and slightly
fl eshy pink tone aren’t working. The aluminum bottles are
nice, but they only make the fl eshy color look more pallid.
This label would have benefi ted greatly from white or real
kraft paper. The type is generally nice, but sometimes it gets
uncomfortably and inconsistently close to the trim edge,
while other times it is quite spacious.
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r W
OK. I’ve tried diet and exercise, all forms of powdered
drinks, every manner of diet this and reduced calorie that,
and even a few Extra Strength Excedrin with a Red Bull
chaser (don’t do that one), but I never considered that my
shampoo was actually the secret to losing my beer belly.
I hope that this is not some ploy, because brands need to
be honest and authentic, fi rst and foremost. However, if
it does in fact work, I do like the tapered bottle design as
a slenderizing cue, but I fi nd the mono-color, black and
blotchy, tape-measure graphic much too heavy and overt.
Now, pass me that eight-hour energy shot and stop my legs
from twitching.
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r W
Big global brands like this one have a lot of cooks in the
kitchen. Lots of folks need to sign off on the identity for
this hundred million–dollar brand. The package must
reference the tens of millions of dollars of global advertising
that support it. And, all too often, that’s where things get
watered down. The Snuggle bear is the primary brand
mnemonic. Having him float in space with no connection
to the logo or the primary consumer benefit is a missed
opportunity. The changing size ratio between the bear and
the logo across product offerings is a mistake. Huge CPG
corporations often look for what they call an “extractable
branding unit”—the logo, core mnemonic, and ownable
brand color all locked into a unifying device that can be
extracted and applied to every consumer touchpoint. This
identity has three separate elements—the bear, the logo,
and the changing colors—that are inconsistently applied
across the line.
S W
Okay, who doesn’t love a cuddly little bear? But, this one
looks a little like it’s being flushed away. Why does re-
branding of the large brands often include a swirl, and
how does that say “clean”? I know my washer agitates the
clothes; it always has. The detergent or fabric softener isn’t
going to change that. I do like the colors of these packages
and the bear has a slightly different pose on each, which is a
nice touch.
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