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Premium / Disruption / Evolution / Limiteds / Medical / Sustainable
Positioning products in the premium segment offers opportunities as well as threads. Obviously it is key that consumers must rate the product and its quality as a real, convincing premium product. Product disappointment must not happen. But not just the product itself, but also the brand must be credible offering premium products.
Design has a crucial role in communicating this premium positioning in a convincing way that fits the brand and is credible from a consumers’ point of view.
A performance-oriented relaunch of the Douglas Skin Focus range, emphasizing the premium appeal of Douglas’ own brands. Clear, simple, and beautifully demonstrating skincare expertise.
DUCKSTEIN has always been offered at a premium price in bars & restaurants. Qualitative consumer research indicated that being and showing individuality has been an important aspect to decide drinking a Duckstein.
Moreover consumers were relatively proud of drinking this special beer. Therefore we decided to develop an individual bottle with an embossed Duckstein ‘D’ and a label design with a numbered sealing, a strong branding and the signature of the brewmaster to prove the quality.
The bottle shape underlines the sensual drinking experience and the beer is supposed to stand on the dinner table replacing wine for beer lovers and to be drunk from the glas.
In order to clearly premiumise an established top Shampoo player such as Schwarzkopf, strong signals are needed: a special product formula based on selected high-quality deep-sea extracts, a memorable, elegant sub-branding and a fascinating design appeal in outstandingly brilliant colours with a luxurious material haptic.
And so a classic brand successfully opens itself up to new high-premium users.
Pampering yourself a little in your everyday life at home is absolutely in trend – and bringing the world’s most beautiful SPA rituals into your own bathroom the easiest way.
As we oversee the entire world of Bref rim blocks, it is crucial to distinctly differentiate the various product lines, each catering to specific target groups with unique benefits. The Bref de Luxe range, for instance, offers elegant and delicate premium scents inspired by fine fragrances. Luxury perfumes for your toilet – while, of course, maintaining the brand and design identity of Bref.
Although consistency and coherence are key when it comes to brand building design. However, brands & products sometimes face situations where they have to break through, disrupt what one usually would expect.
The level of disruption, of course, may vary depending on the brand, the target group and/or the challenge the product faces.
Here are some examples of disruptive designs we created for well established brands:
How does a beer brand look when its ingredients are mainly sourced from a small farm and brewed almost next door in a small brewery? We decided to capture the rebellious attitude of the makers, referencing their farming background to create a beer brand that stands out from “normal beers,” grabbing consumers’ attention.
Various farm animals with a rebellious touch represent different beer styles in a unique way. The goal is to create a strong local identity among beer drinkers for this craft beer.
Here is an extraordinary example from us that revolutionized the household cleaner market! When it was launched the market of power cleaners was not existing yet! We developed a disruptive design concept including naming, branding, with a shocking graphic & colour code. In fact it has been launched in a test market without previous consumer research – establishing a brand new category, Cillit Bang became a worldwide market leader within a few years! What a success and we are very proud we’ve been part of this team. Thank you Reckitt for going this brave route with us!
And teenage girls don’t want to use their mother’s brand. They do know that NIVEA is a trusted brand offering good and reliable products. But not for them…
Until we created the teenage version of NIVEA. Naming & design all from us – successfully launched in many countries around the world, finally offering a face care range from NIVEA for teenage girls!
Young, urban Women. A target group that is not very much in focus of the “normal” NIVEA Face Care skin regimes.
It was clear that we had to create a new graphical language, a color code that you wouldn’t expect from NIVEA, a typography which is rather rather young & hip – however, still the packaging design has to fit somehow into the NIVEA universe, i.e. no complete alien, but just disruptive enough to break through.
Premium / Disruption / Evolution / Limiteds / Medical / Sustainable
Most brands are evolved carefully. Sometimes a revolutionary relaunch may be needed, but in general consistency and coherence based on the brand history are requested.
Brand evolution however has many faces. It could be the soft modernisation of a well established brand as well as a line extension addressing new consumer needs or perhaps the demands of a certain category demands have changed significantly.
Therefore every design evolution presents unique objectives that require being catered to.
NIVEA SUN has always been one of NIVEA’s most important categories.
Changes have always been carefully executed, but due to drastic shifts in climate the category had to adapt dramatically over the past years. On one hand consumers still want to enjoy fun in the sun (holidays) on the other hand the sun has become increasingly aggressive and consumers are demanding safe products that can protect them and their loved ones. Additionally, there are quite different expectations around the world. So – not an easy task for the relaunch of a global brand portfolio in a constantly evolving environment.
Various concepts have been developed and tested, resulting in a more serious design approach. The new design creates room to place more focus on the SPF as well as benefits without losing the communication of emotional values, which are carried by the brand NIVEA itself.
NIVEA Creme has always been the heart of NIVEA. However, today all purpose creams have to address many more aspects and differentiating consumer’s/skin needs. Therefore NIVEA Soft has been launched to provide a lighter, quick absorbent alternative to THE Creme.
We had the pleasure to complete the NIVEA assortment of APCs with the launch of NIVEA Care, a revolutionary formula as caring as the original Creme, but as quickly absorbent as NIVEA Soft. However, the benefit that consumers liked most in product tests, was the silky skin feeling NIVEA Care provided. So we decided to dramatise this benefit visually and combine it with a strong branding. The global launch was one of the most successful mono products NIVEA ever introduced. As NIVEA Care products have been reduced to a small range a packaging relaunch that garantuees improved differentiation at the shelves had been required. Thank you Annemieke, Hanne & Jörg for being part of this great journey.
Evolving well established and successful brands can be quite challenging and sometimes, following a lengthly design process, the results are only visible from a professional perspective. However, small changes often have a strong impact on how consumers view a brand: additional to increasing the trust in a brand, maintaining its overall look and character can also improve the communication of product benefits significantly.
This was precisely the task we were asked solve for the design relaunch of meridol and elmex. The design hadn’t changed for over a decade and from a consumers (brand users) point of view there was no need to either. Nevertheless the decision was made to increase the focus on the benefit communication and update the overall graphics to a more contemporary look which is exactly what we provided. Furthermore we prepared the brand for new product innovations should a new relaunch be required in the future.
We transformed a low-interest WC product brand into a dynamic range of sub-brands with distinct consumer benefits. A lively brand identity highlights key RTBs through impactful design, setting new category standards and reinforcing market leadership. By translating functional RTBs into striking visual stories, each product’s USP is uniquely showcased.
With its origins in functional food supplement pastes, Gimborn has been able to firmly establish itself as a pet specialist since 1855. Broad product range extensions from high-quality cat litter to selected quality snacks for dogs & cats have made Biokat’s, GimDog and GimCat successful big players in the pet market.
The exciting task of respecting the individual characteristics of each singular segment while strengthening the overall umbrella brand as a whole formed the core of our visual brand evolution:
A functional but impactful look for the new paste range, emotionally involving cat litter designs across different price tiers from entry-level to super premium, or the launch of a new high-end veterinary litter range –
the smart evolution of the individual sub-brands was able to lead the overall brand to great market success – both, throughout Europe & in Asia.
Premium / Disruption / Evolution / Limiteds / Medical / Sustainable
Packaging design is one key factor for initiating sales. And limited editions and/or promotional packaging offer the opportunity to push sales.
The promotional design, of course, has to fit the brand and product, while also teasing new consumers to try the brand by offering an attractive extra benefit (special ingredient, attractive design, limited number etc.).
Thus limited editions and promotional designs are a great tool to push sales and attract new consumers.
Limited editions work particularly well for the household market because of their emotional entertainment value: pleasantly surprising themes spontaneously trigger the consumer and actively stimulate the intention to buy: Impactful themes create excitement for a rather low-interest category.
The Douglas Men Advent Calendar transforms a traditionally female-dominated category into a compelling male product by leveraging sleek design and premium aesthetics. Strategically crafted to attract female buyers while appealing to men, it balances sophistication with a strong gifting impulse. The result is a visually striking seasonal highlight that enhances brand presence and drives purchase decisions in-store.
This wonderful and very well accepted Winter Edition of NIVEA Shower Mousse is one of our creative highlights in this category. Perfect match of graphic, illustration, text, product & brand made this a huge success story on the shelves.
Objective of these limited editions was to further establish Duckstein as the Nr.1 beer specialty brand in the premium segment. Duckstein has always had a strong link to the cultural and art scene. The decision to offer these beer specialties in 0,75l bottles was based on the brands positioning in the area of “shared treat”, drinking this beer in combination with nice food when having a dinner party with good friends.
Packaging that speaks to the heart: Emotionally charged illustrations for condoms, designed to engage a younger target group with the allure of winter warmth and hot summer coolness.
Premium / Disruption / Evolution / Limiteds / Medical / Sustainable
Working for the medical business is certainly different from FMCGs. However, certain insights that have proven effective in terms of branding and communication when offering medical products to consumers in the OTC business can be valuable. Of course, ethical and medical standards must be upheld, and consumer decisions are often influenced by the pharmacy’s recommendation. Nevertheless, in the end, both consumers and pharmacists seek a brand and product they can trust.
A distinctive, modified typography forms the umbrella, resulting in two new brands: elacpharma for medical OTC products and elacvital for vitamin & mineral supplements.
The objective was to create a coherent design identity that, on the one hand, differentiates the two product lines while, on the other hand, highlighting their shared medical heritage. elacpharma is designed to establish a strong brand presence behind the counter, whereas elacvital is more consumer-oriented, making a strong impact in front of the counter in selected pharmacies.
Based on the well-established Wound Desinfection Spray previously developed by us, we have now created a comprehensive range of OTC disinfection products. This range features a clear structure that emphasizes the brand, product names, and, where applicable, product benefits (subject to regulation status). Additionally, premium reduced visuals are used to showcase the product’s intended usage area.
Building on the design we developed for the OTC disinfection brand octenisept, we extended the design identity to Schülke’s professional antisepsis range for use in hospitals and doctors’ offices.
We designed the complete range of PohlBoskamp’s OTC Gelo products, including others like NYDA, with a striking color-coded block and layout. This design effectively showcases the PohlBoskamp range in pharmacies and includes impactful usage visuals.
The objective of this new OTC range, which serves as a line extension to the existing medical prescription product, is to attract women suffering from cystitis. The packaging design should have a distinctively feminine, modern-medical appearance that is both impactful and approachable when displayed on pharmacy shelves.
Sobrade, another stand-alone brand from PohlBoskamp, is aimed at addressing heartburn/reflux symptoms. The name Sobrade is derived from German “SOdBRennen ADE” (meaning “heartburn good-bye”). The packaging design effectively symbolizes the upper part of the body in a medical manner (depicted in blue), the esophagus (depicted in white), and the beneficial effects of Sobrade in alleviating the discomfort.
Premium / Disruption / Evolution / Limiteds / Medical / Sustainable
Sustainability is no longer an option — it’s an expectation. Brands must adapt to evolving environmental and consumer demands while maintaining their core identity. Design plays a crucial role in this transformation, making sustainability tangible through visual language, clear communication, and thoughtful brand storytelling.
NIVEA Body. Development of an innovative roll & squeeze bottle, reducing plastic by 50%. By minimizing cap and bottle weight while ensuring stability and UV protection, the design is both sustainable and highly practical. Thinner, more flexible packaging allows easy squeezing, rolling, and complete product usage. (Finalist in the “Packaging Europe Sustainability Award”!)
For Douglas Naturals, we developed a packaging design that seamlessly blends premium cosmetics with natural authenticity. The design highlights the organic essence of the range while maintaining a sophisticated, high-end appeal—ensuring that sustainability and luxury go hand in hand.