packaging | Basement Light Design

October 8, 2012July 16, 2013

Salvador Dalí’s lollipop logo

Salvador Dalí, the wacky surrealist known for his signature pointy moustache and painting melting clocks, was also graphic designer behind the classic Chupa Chups lollipops—an enduringly sweet, bright rendition of a daisy.

The Catalan lollipop made its first appearance in 1958, when the company founder Enric Bernat hatched the idea of placing a bonbon on a stick. He called the product “GOL,” imagining the candy as a soccer ball and the open mouth a net. It didn’t go over well. So Bernat hired an ad agency that renamed his product “Chupa Chups” (from the Spanish chupar, meaning “to suck”). All that was left was the branding. In 1969, Bernat complained about what he had while having coffee with his artist friend—none other than Salvador Dalí.

Salvador Dalí in 1954

According to lore, the painter went to work immediately, doodling for an hour on newspapers that were laying around. Dalí’s version masterfully integrated the wordmark into the daisy design, and has hardly changed since. And book publisher Phaidon points us to one subtle, extremely smart feature of the design:

Acutely aware of presentation, Dalí insisted that his design be placed on top of the lolly, rather than the side, so that it could always be viewed intact. It’s proved to be one of the most enduring pieces of branding ever and one that’s still used today, four billion sales later.

What would induce the famous artist to take on such a project? Dinero. The guy rarely turned it down, causing surrealist poet André Breton to nickname him “Avida Dollars”—an anagram of Dalí’s name that roughly translates to “eager for cash.”

Image: p4nc0np4n

Courtesy Belinda Lanks, Fast Company

January 31, 2011July 16, 2013

Starbucks changes logo

In March Starbucks will celebrate its 40th anniversary and rollout a “new” logo (not actually new—a stripping away of the word ring, leaving the familiar siren unchanged but now in green).

Howard Schultz, Starbucks’ chairman and CEO, writes in an announcement on the company’s website, “we’ve given her a small but meaningful update to ensure that the Starbucks brand continues to embrace our heritage in ways that are true to our core values and that also ensure we remain relevant and poised for future growth.” By removing text from the logo, “international ubiquity” and an exploration into non-coffee business ventures must have been listed on the team’s creative brief. But overall, reaction from the rank and file has not been positive. A typical comment on the site reads, “This gold card user isn’t impressed!”

Mike Peck, senior creative manager at Starbucks and his creative team admitted modifying the brand identity “was the project of a lifetime.” The logo was broken down into four main parts—color, shape, typeface and the siren. Peck and his team found the answer in simplicity.

In 1971, the company began selling coffee beans and spices in Seattle’s Pike Place Market. By 1992, the company became publicly traded.

December 13, 2010July 16, 2013

Noisy SunChips bag

It took biochemists four years to develop the compostable bag for SunChips, distributed by US snack manufacturer Frito-Lay. And it took consumers a few short months to reject the invention, taking their gripe—that the bags are “too darn loud”—to the internet and that all-important sounding board, Facebook. The packaging is a marvel of molecular technology, made entirely from plant material. Despite its brittle texture the bag is remarkably strong. After the launch, I tested the packaging myself while dining at a local sandwich shop. True, the bag does crackle, not unlike the sound of glass breaking. But to remove it from the market because the bag doesn’t “make the right sound” seems a knee jerk reaction to fussy consumer focus groups and grumblers. However, the Wall Street Journal reports that sales of SunChips declined every month since the introduction of the new bags. American capitalists demand a quiet, yet compostable, snack bag.

One would hope given half a chance, snackers would become accustomed to its sound and feel, and who knows, perhaps other chips would follow suit. How many plastic chip bags clog up the nation’s landfills each year? I do not have those numbers handy, but I’d guess in the millions, and at 100 years per bag to degrade, that’s a lot of waste.

My solution is groundbreaking: empty the chips from the bag into a bowl, plate, or napkin, and discard the bag… (And concessionaires should avoid selling SunChips at concert venues or movie theaters!)

December 6, 2010July 16, 2013

Jameson Whiskey “juice box”

While I have not yet viewed the Fox tv biker program, “Sons of Anarchy,” San Francisco “hipster” blog Uptown Almanac reported a case of product placement on the show. A recent episode of the show, which airs on Fox TV’s FX cable network, shows a rectangular container—similar to the juice box containers parents force their wee ones to drink instead of soda pop. But instead of juice, the product appears to contain Jameson Irish Whiskey. (Click above to enlarge the video capture image that clearly shows a Jameson Whiskey “juice box” next to one of the actors.) Fans of the show, searching online for the product, were annoyed to discover the product does not exist.

Jameson—a major advertiser on the series—claims the product does not and will never exist, and was a prop produced by Fox’s art department. Many would hope Jameson would consider bringing such a product to market. After all, wine in paper cartons has already proven to be popular with those on a budget.

Until then, fans are left to dream…

October 25, 2010July 16, 2013

NYC condom wrapper design contest

With more than 15,000 online votes, Luis Acosta, a 29-year-old graphic designer from Queens, New York, won the NYC condom package design contest. The New York Department of Health and Mental Hygiene announced that Acosta’s design with an “on” power button would adorn six million limited-edition free condoms set for release this year.

“I hope my package design reminds people that they’re in control. We all have the power to protect ourselves from sexually transmitted infections, HIV/AIDS and unplanned pregnancies,” said Acosta.

First introduced by the health department on Valentine’s Day 2007, the NYC condom is the United States’ first municipally branded prophylactic. More than 40 million of the male condoms will be distributed free in city bars, clinics, gyms and other locations. This year is the first for a wrapper design contest.

Dr. Monica Sweeney, the assistant New York City health commissioner, said, “We want everybody to think and talk about condoms all the time.”

July 20, 2010July 16, 2013

Miller Beer “Vortex” bottle

If you are like me and have seen the Miller Beer “Vortex” bottle billboard, you’ve probably also wondered why anyone might want their beer to pour out into a “vortex.” In recent years MillerCoors introduced its cold-activated bottle, a useful innovation where the mountains on the label turn blue when your beverage is at its optimum temperature. However, I don’t see the same level of creativity with the Vortex, which, according to a MillerCoors sales rep, is a bottle with specially designed interior grooves that “create a vortex as you’re pouring the beer.” This innovation is intended to “create buzz and excitement and give consumers another reason to choose Miller.” For me, it’s just a different-shaped bottle that won’t provide much consumer benefit. MillerCoors’ advertising agency is Saatchi & Saatchi.