Arla upgrades design of Arla Cow hard cheese

My husband and I take turns doing the weekly grocery shopping. Today it was his turn and yet again he managed to do his shopping in 40 minutes. A trip that normally takes me about 1,5hours since I tend to spend more time looking at brands, new launches and new design, rather than focusing on the shopping list... Well, I guess it comes with the trade...

Anyway, when unloading the bags I managed to spot something quite interesting. I think I've previously highlighted the brand positioning 'closer to nature' work by Arla, one of the largest dairy FMCG companies in Europe. Arlas new brand positioning has so far resulted in a new corporate logo, an impressive number of new ads and quite a few new products. The Arla total brand family is huge, and it cannot be an easy task trying to connect all the different sub-brands to the now more 'natural' motherbrand. Some need to be tied more closely to the core values of the 'mother', and others should be allowed to act more freely, given a different role in the market.

Anyway, back to the point. What I spotted today was a new design for Arla's range of hard cheese. Looking at the previous design it may have been clear and recognisable. But it also gave a very industrial and cold impression. With Arla now aiming for a warmer, more natural touch, it was interesting to see the upgraded design of hard cheese. Spot the difference below.

To the left you can see the old design for Arla Präst - with the Arla Cow quite prominently displayed on the front, on black background, and with a photo of a sandwich with cheese on the left.

What can one say about this design? Cold, rather boring, basic, isn't it?

Now, look at the new design below. And bear in mind that the pastic packaging solution is exactly the same.
Personally I think the new design conveys a higher quality cheese. But not only that. In the new design there is a linkage to cheese heritage and tradition, and a clearer and more logical brand architecture with connection between Arla corporate, Arla  cow and last but not least to the variant Präst. I especially like the new Cow seal that holds the variant name.

In the new design Arla is also aiming to lift the taste and consumer benefits of Präst cheese through simple yet tasteful storytelling. I think this is the right way to go in a category that is highly competitive and where Arla must convince consumers that it makes sense to stick to the Arla brand, and not divert to the growing number of cheap no label or private label alternatives.

One thing that I find may still be missing in the new design is a stronger connection to 'naturalness'. The usage of 'beige' is surely there to convey this feel but maybe it could have been even more prominent. Hard cheese is surely a natural product - so there is definetely no mismatch with naturalness and the product itself.

So, to summarise the argumentation above I must say that I like these upgrades by Arla and I look forward to follow the next steps of Arla building and developing their brand and broad product portfolio.

Pepsi diet - now in the new, and debated 'skinny' can

 In todays Resume the new Pepsi 'skinny' can is mentioned.  I'm a firm believer in the power of attractive packaging and packaging design that's fully aligned with the brand proposition. And I think the new Pepsi 'skinny' can is just that. It's a modern and sleek packaging targeted at a group of consumers who care about their appearance and the stylishness of products. So what is so wrong about that? Well, the reason the new 'skinny' can causes a bit of outrage in media is of course the play on the word 'skinny' and its obvious linkages to this body ideal. There must of course be a specific reason for the use of the 'skinny' word in marketing communications. Pepsi knows that it will cause a debate, and thus.... lots of extra media and social media coverage for the new bottle and design. Is this ethical? Hmmm, well Pepsi don't seem to mind that much. And ethical or not, I'm sure it will be profitable. So, from my perspective this can be summarised as great design, great packaging but with debatable marcoms and corporate ethics.

Love the design by this Kiwi based company - The Collective Dairy

I absolutely love the communication and packaging design by The Collective Dairy, a New Zeeland based dairy company that one of my reader's suggested me to take a look at. You can't but adore their fresh take on dairy goods packaging design and their witty unique way of talking about themselves and their dairy products.  I can't wait to check out their products on my next visit to Aeteroa! Check out their website

Pour Tea - clever way of promoting consumer engagement

A colleague and friend of mine told me about this lovely concept by the swedish coffee and tea makers Johan & Nyström (a company that I hadn't heard about before - but I'm now well impressed!). Those guys apparently noted that there was a gap in the market and a great opportunity to promote ice tea in Sweden - well spotted for a start! And they realised that they needed a good, well positioned and well designed concept to make it work. So, here comes Pour Tea, a new brand with a range of products that I'm sure are refreshing and tasty, but where they've also realised that it takes more to create consumer buzz, build brand personality and sell lots of modern ice tea! The packaging design was done by Identity Works - nice job! In their analysis they did a great job of utilising the insight that 'ice tea is a drink for social moments, and often drunk in cafés' - this insight they utilised to build a great conceptual idea i.e. the idea of creating the modern 'message in a bottle' by utilising the inside of the label to print different messages from other Pour Tea devotees. And the label also has information on how your own message can be printed on Pour Tea labels or on the Pour Tea website (which I can no longer find - hmm would have loved a link here but you have to google it yourself). Well, apart from the non existing website issue - Don't you love this concept too!?

Arla Communication - clever use of packaging

It's Saturday morning and I'm sitting around by my kitchen table enjoying a lazy breakfast... Suddenly I realise that I'm not just sitting around enjoying my brekkie. I'm also being communicated to... In a few minutes time while I believe that my eyes have rested on the Arla milk carton I've also learnt about their latest Arla Kelda launch - a Tuscan tomatosoup. That's powerful! I'm being communicated too in my own home by the kitchen table in an engaging and non intrusive manner. I like! And Arla is also keeping it personal and interesting - via little stories and ideas of how I can make my life easier.
I'm impressed with the way that Arla communicates on their packaging. And I'm impressed that their marketing people have made the whole organisation - and particularly production and purchasing who have to deal with an increased degree of flexibility - understand the power of this kind of communication. It sure works!

Bliw soap – Great new Nordic themed brand repositioning

The Bliw soap brand is a classic Swedish brand. It was launched in 1968 as the first liquid hand soap in Sweden and today its appeal is still connected to its retro 60’s ‘bubble’ shape.

Well, I have bought Palmolive liquid soap for years but when I visited the supermarket today and saw the new Bliw look I just had to buy it. And the reason was primarily that the new packaging design stands out on shelf and looks so naturally clean, pure and fresh. Palmolive didn’t have a chance! But when I also read on the packaging I understood that the Bliw brand has been repositioned as more environmentally friendly (via Svanen, a Swedish quality mark for environmentally friendly goods) and with formulations that have been ‘inspired by the Nordic nature’. I think that this is a great direction and positioning for Bliw. The new positioning gives the brand the differentiation that is so badly needed to defend and gain market share against the likes and financial strength of Colgate-Palmolive. So, I certainly hope my new Bliw soap will live up to my high expectations! Well done Cederroth - great concept development and positioning work. Who knows, I might just turn into a loyal Bliw consumer...

Willys PL chocolate - design makes it an option!

OK, so there I am doing my weekly grocery shopping. These days I am a devoted Willys fan - primarily because it is so incredibly easy to park there... Sad reason, I know - but grocery shopping has to be easy! Especially with a little baby in tow.

Anyway, during my most recent visit to Willys I spotted this upgraded design of their private label dark chocolate. I must say that this is just an amazing improvement to the dull packaging that they had before! It was an easy choice to reach for Lindt (first choice!) or Marabou Premium (pretty good too - but I hate the name Premium!) instead. But, with this design upgrade I automatically added Willys as an alternative. So, I will try Willys and... if it is good I might just become hooked. So, that is the power of great design folks!!!

Frebaco - new costume for a tired brand

I want to write something about Frebaco - a Swedish muesli brand that I had never purchased before simply because it just looked so incredibly dry and non appetizing (see the lower photo). But a few weeks ago I spotted this new Frebaco - with a product design that all of a sudden looks simply mouth-watering (upper picture). Good work Frebaco. This is a real lift to your brand! However, it is a real shame that your website and the rest of the product range looks so dull and dry. Have you got some good brand values in place - let us know! Tell us what your company and your brand is all about. If it's any good - let us see this in the whole product range!