28 | Regulars / Branding and design appreciate the health benefts of a Mediterranean diet. MessagingTo write the Wildfare story, we deeply explored semantics and perspective to develop a descriptive tagline focused on their customers and what they do. Using alliteration and imagery, the tagline ‘Proud Purveyors of Provisions of the Mediterranean Soil and Sun’ conjures depictions of the Mediterranean, orchards, Wildfare products after redesigngrowth and Wildfare as connoisseurs. Following that with a visceral brand story that includes phrases such as ‘culinary “Through careful analysis, creative exploration, traditions dating back 3,000 years’ and and a deep understanding of the new target ‘delicacies steeped in history and tradition’ adds to the richness of Wildfare’s story audience, we transformed Wildfare’s packaging that will be complemented with the visual identity. Finally, ending each copy block into a captivating and compelling visual story” on the packaging with ‘wildly irresistible Mediterranean fare’ punctuates the focus on tantalizing customers. looked fat, while others had movement. brands appeal to our haptic brains with We fnally settled on a logo that combines a textures that encourage us to pick up those Make your mark fower and the sun in the form of a mosaic. packages. High-quality 4-color printing, Once our narrative was established, I Our Wildfare mosaic fower brings the embellishments, coatings, and fnishing moved on to visual storytelling. When I’m narrative story to life visually. were essential to complete Wildfare’s designing a brand identity, every detail rebrand. Metallics add shine to the mosaic is imbued with meaning. As a curator of Packaging a rebrand fower. With 50 percent white under imported foods steeped in history, I was With the brand identity as a cornerstone, 4-color printing on a metalized flm, we delighted to fnd the typeface Surveyor, the next step was to redesign the achieved just enough shimmer on the which is derived from historical engraved packaging, Wildfare’s original request. I gradient, and the tactile spot gloss on maps. I paired that beautiful classic serif designed fve foundational templates to the fruit imagery and logotype added a font with a sans serif ‘workhorse’ typeface, establish the basis of more than 100 SKUs: subtle contrast to the soft, dull varnished Whitney Narrow, that was developed to 1. A vertical label on their fagship background. be legible even at the smallest point sizes – product—olive oil With the rebrand complete, we applied which is a must when designing food labels. 2. A horizontal label for a shorter jar the new designs to more than 100 SKUs. To design the logotype with Surveyor, 3. A fex-pack for dried fruits We began with a brand struggling to sell I morphed pieces of the upper- and 4. A folding carton for pasta its products due to dull packaging and a lower-case ‘w’ with the dot of the ‘i’ 5. A wrapper for a granola bar lack of effective messaging. Through careful to create a unique ligature that sets a Thinking about the design existing in analysis, creative exploration, and a deep thoughtful tone for the brand. a retail environment next to Wildfare’s understanding of the new target audience, To create the mark that would competitors informed how I applied the we transformed Wildfare’s packaging into a accompany the logotype, I became new identity to these various formats, captivating and compelling visual story. energized by the Mediterranean culture and shapes and sizes. The result? Packaging and a brand heritage: intricate mosaic patterns from The background on the labels and identity that now refects the brand’s the region; the delicate lacework stucco of packaging is a warm sunrise progressing purpose and premium products. To date the Alhambra, which I had recently visited; into a beautiful blue sky, evocative of the Wildfare has expanded sales from the and bird, sun and tulip motifs, where I Mediterranean. Anchoring every primary limited tri-state area on the east coast to discovered that tulips originated in Turkey. display panel is Wildfare’s mosaic fower, the Midwest and west coast.The color palette emerged organically, representing the sun since every product as I based it on the Mediterranean Sea, in the Wildfare line relies on the sun. This Vicki Strull is a packaging with its myriad shades of blue, depending prominent unique mark becomes instantly designer, strategist, and on the time of day, how deep the water recognizable and differentiates Wildfare speaker who advises is, and whether the sun is glinting off the from its competitors.top-tier and emerging waves. From deep, rich purple, reminiscent Finally, the window problem of dried brands on how to of eggplant—a staple in Mediterranean fruit was solved with photographic leverage the power of cuisine—to colors of the sky, sunrise to compositional fruit imagery in its most print and packaging within sunset, and even the dark mysteries of the appealing form—freshly picked.their omnichannel marketing strategies. midnight hour, all are included in the color She consults with print service providers palette. Wildfare’s color palette is now A converter’s turn to make it shineand OEMs to create new revenue streams evocative, sophisticated and unexpected. While the graphics are meaningful, the and shares her strategies in a master class As I began to play with shapes, colors are intentional, and the typography for MarketWise Academy and at design, monograms and symbols, I mixed and is legible, even the best designs are packaging and print events around the world. matched colors, layered designs, and incomplete without vigilant production and Join fellow trendsetters at vickistrull.com or refned the concepts. Some of the icons fnishing. We know the most successful follow Vicki on LinkedIn @vickistrulllabelsandlabeling.com