Visual Identity, Packaging design

The Brief

When we first started working with London-based Daimon Barber, they were a small company with big dreams. They wanted to take on the big boys of the cosmetics industry, and they knew they needed a strong visual identity to match the quality of their products.The types of retailers they wanted to work with, such as Harvey Nichols, Flannels, Fortnum & Mason, and Selfridges, demanded the highest level of branding and packaging. They also had plans to massively extend their product range, so they needed a future-proof brand guideline that would allow them to do this consistently. We knew that we could take them there, and they trusted our vision and process to make that happen.

The Process

Design

As well as meetings and discussions to understand the retailers and their target audiences, we also conducted in-depth research into their competitors and contemporaries.

A logo already existed, but we knew we needed to look at the brand as a whole, with a specific focus on packaging and how that could be applied across a diverse range of products of various shapes and sizes, with many not yet ready for market. Comprehensive brand guidelines weer created that covered everything from advertising, to packaging, print brochures and flyers and online and in-store advertising.

Production

There were a number of practical considerations to this project. Product details had to appear on-pack in multiple languages (whilst adhering to legal guidelines) - which required some very well thought out layout and font choices! We all wanted the products to look like they belonged at the very highest end of the market - but we also understood the limitations of a small company who didn’t have the production budgets of their competitors, the likes of Unilever or Procter & Gamble.We worked directly with printers and packaging manufacturers to choose materials, finishes and print methods that allowed us to achieve the look and feel that we were all striving towards, whilst making sure the choices were economically sensible.

The outcome

The material that we produced from the brand guidelines we created included the primary and secondary packaging of the products, advertising, window displays, printed brochures, online ads and a range of merchandise. Since the branding has been implemented and rolled out, the brand has gone from strength to strength, appearing in now in high end retailers such as Harrods, John Lewis, Fenwick, NEXT & Selfridges—as well as being used by stylists for stars on the Hollywood red carpet. The brand is also no longer simply online having recently opened a bricks and mortar store in Stratford-upon-Avon. We are proud to have been involved in the growth of this excellent product. We all still use it ourselves!