Read the latest opinion
If a brand that fuses memes, hot takes, occultism, and coffee is going to succeed anywhere, it’s probably in east London. Dark Arts Coffee started out in 2014 in a Homerton railway arch, and managed to corner that distinct subgenre of goth/metal/biker-ish aesthetics which opts for craft ale over snakebite; Hackney over Camden; self-care over self-destruction. Where the old guard,...
In the last five years, canned cocktails have become ubiquitous, with offerings from MOTH: (packaging by Pentagram) and Whitebox (cans created in-house) among the strongest designs competing on the shelves of off-licenses, delis and bottle shops. Convenience and a post-pandemic demand for ‘on-the-go’ experiences have helped drive this trend, with Mintel data demonstrating that sales of spirit-based ready-to-drink beverages increased...
Founded by Dominika Leveau and Chim Sonne-Schmidt in 2021, textile brand Tameko feels thoroughly ‘Scandi’ in aesthetics and ethos – it’s all clean lines, a singularly restrained stance on beauty. It’s form following function. Tameko embodies that very contemporary take on the luxury sensibility that never shouts about its status. It doesn’t need to: luxe quietly but confidently oozes from...
Beauty is, of course, in the eye of the beholder, but there’s no denying that objectively, its branding and identity design has undergone some huge changes over the past decade or so. Gone are the days of faux-luxurious designs that were all about swathes of abstract silk; women coiffured to within an inch of their life; a microscopic lens on...
What does ‘healthcare’ look like today, especially when we’re increasingly talking about preventative treatment? For Parsley Health and GlycanAge, which promote functional medicine, it’s serene – all blush pink, forest green and rounded corners; for Modern Age, which focuses on longevity, it’s more clinical, with high-resolution botanical imagery and classical icons; Ezra, which offers full-body MRIs as cancer prevention, goes...
Sauces, oils, seasonings and condiments are consistently thriving categories in direct-to-consumer packaged goods. These high-margin, shelf-stable products can be easily differentiated with unique flavours and ingredients, and have high branding potential that can quickly adapt to trends. Right now, hot sauce its having its moment, with celebrities from Ed Sheeran to Brooklyn Beckham jumping on the band wagon, following trailblazers...
Bezi was founded by Ilay Karateke – an Istanbul-raised, New York-based, ex-McKinsey consultant turned cheesemaker – and Hasan Bahcivan – a Berkeley-trained engineer from one of Turkey’s largest and most legacied cheesemaking families. Both grew up in large families, with their lives punctuated by big family-style meals shared with friends and neighbours. Labneh, a Middle Eastern spreadable cheese, was ever...
Wholy Greens is a B-Corp certified Dutch food brand dedicated to transforming the way people perceive and enjoy vegetables. Its mission is to create a mindset shift from ‘having to eat veggies’ to ‘genuinely loving veggies’ – and it uses pasta as its primary vehicle. It’s a smart set up, not least because, frankly, what experiences aren’t more enjoyable when...
Mortgages aren’t exactly the most sexy or fun concepts, nor are the companies that offer them. Likewise, the sector isn’t exactly known for a bold or forward thinking approach to brand design. But it’s often the more traditionally dull-leaning brands or companies that make for the most creative – not to mention difficult – branding projects. Perhaps that’s part of...
Since 2019, sales of beauty products labelled ‘clean’ have soared in popularity, and – as with all consumer trends, from interiors to fashion design – parental preferences influence the marketplace for children’s products as much as adults’. Enter Uoga Uoga (which translates to ‘Berry Berry’), a Lithuanian natural beauty and skincare company founded in 2010 that produces mineral-based makeup as...
Over the years, London-based Alphabetical has honed both a distinctive style and a distinctive client list: often, its most celebrated projects are those for brands or organisations that are both a unique place, and more specifically a site for a community that’s underserved or underrepresented. In short, Alphabetical has honed its knack for uniting a people-centric, frequently cocreation based approach...
From the BP&O archives
Lots of extras. Cancel any time. Read more