Press Release
Theo Rebrand Branding by Clarkmcdowall Inc Is Granted the Silver A' Design Award in Packaging Design
Clarkmcdowall Inc acknowledged for packaging design by the international grand jury of the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
COMO, Italy, April 23, 2021 /DesignNewswire/ A' Design Award & Competition has confirmed the Silver A' Design Award in the Packaging Design category for Theo Rebrand Branding by Clarkmcdowall Inc, designed for Clarkmcdowall. The result belongs to the 2020 - 2021 A' Design Award & Competition and was decided through blind peer review by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members, who assessed anonymized entries against predetermined criteria.
The Silver A' Design Award Explained
The Silver A' Design Award celebrates top-tier designs that embody excellence and innovation. This award acknowledges creations that are not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional, reflecting the designer's deep understanding and skill. Silver A' Design Award recipients are recognized for their contribution to raising industry standards and advancing the practice of design. Their work often incorporates original innovations and elicits a strong emotional response, making a notable impact on the improvement of everyday life.
Regarding Theo Rebrand Branding
Theo Rebrand is a packaging and visual identity program for a fair-trade, bean-to-bar chocolate brand. The design uses a bold paint stroke as a window to taste discovery and as an expression of the craft behind premium chocolate. A white background suggests clean eating and purity of ingredients, and helps the packs stand out on the shelf. Bars measure about 3 by 6 inches and use a paper overwrap with a foil inner layer. Cups measure about 2 by 4 inches and use a flow wrap on a matte substrate. The aim is to link higher standards with good taste.
Award Record
With this recognition, Clarkmcdowall Inc is a winner of 1 A' Design Award.
About the A' Packaging Design Award
The A' Packaging Design Award is an international packaging competition that recognizes outstanding packaging designs by talented packaging designers worldwide. It is organized within the A' Design Award & Competition and is open to packaging designers, graphic designers, branding agencies and product manufacturers from all countries. Typical entries include bottles, boxes, cans, pouches, tubes and cartons. The awarded packaging designs are published at https://dezigners.org/design-category/packaging
About A' Design Award & Competition
Organized annually since 2008, A' Design Award & Competition is an international, juried design accolade. The competition is open to entries from all countries. The philanthropic mission of the A' Design Award is to advance society through good design, by recognizing and promoting superior products, projects and services that benefit society, and by creating a global awareness and appreciation for good design practices and principles. Nominations are peer reviewed and evaluated anonymously by an international grand jury panel of established academics, design professionals and press members against predetermined criteria such as functionality, ergonomics, engineering, presentation, innovation, usability, sustainability and technology, with score normalization applied to remove biases. Awards are conferred at Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze and Iron levels. Eligible laureates receive the A' Design Prize, which includes the award trophy, the certificate of design excellence, the hardcover yearbook, a lifetime license to use the A' Design Award winner logo, exhibition of awarded works, an invitation to the gala night and award ceremony in Italy, inclusion in the World Design Rankings and Designer Rankings, and public relations and publicity services. Registration, uploading a work and receiving a preliminary score are free of charge, and Professional and Digital Edition laureates are not contractually obliged to pay further fees to claim the A' Design Prize. More information is available at https://competition.adesignaward.com
Press Resources
- Winner Page: https://dezigners.org/112066
- A' Design Award Page: https://competition.adesignaward.com/112066
- Media Showcase: https://www.designnewsroom.com/!112066
- Laureate Profile: https://dezigners.org/d/284616
- Further Information from the Laureate: https://theochocolate.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&
Media Contact
Giulia Ferrari, Press Office
Designers.Org
Via Leone Leoni 32, 22100 Como, Italy
press@designers.org
+39 031 4491953
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Fact Sheet
The Work
- Project
- Theo Rebrand Branding
- Function
- Branding
- Category
- Packaging Design
- Discipline
- Communication Design
- Industry
- Packaging & Retail, Branding & Advertising and Manufacturing
- Colors
- Dark Slate Gray, Lavender, Light Gray, Saddle Brown and Silver
- Images
- 5
- Client
- Clarkmcdowall
The Recognition
- Laureate
- Clarkmcdowall Inc
- Country
- United States of America
- Recognition
- Silver A' Design Award
- Edition
- 2020 - 2021
- Design ID
- #112066
Credits
- Team
- Adrienne Muken, Audra Schroeder and Betsy Price
- Image Credits
- David Estep
Design Details
- Unique Properties
- Theo Chocolate pioneered fair-trade, bean-to-bar chocolate. But when new players came along and fair trade was table stakes, it was time to differentiate. Consumers wanted their choice in chocolate to be simple. We needed to show the link between higher-standard chocolate and good taste. We clarified brand purpose, expanding their offerings through innovation. For design, we prioritized elements that were central to this story and developed a confident visual identity across the ecosystem
- Inspiration
- Our design was inspired by Boldly Reimagined - bringing consumers closer to the layered beauty of responsibly sourced chocolate. We used the bold paint stroke as a window to taste discovery and an expression of the craft of premium chocolate. The white background suggests clean eating, purity of ingredients and allows the pack to cut through visual clutter on shelf. The paint stroke is a distinct element that stands out within the category. The Theo brand mark itself of idiosyncratic quality.
- Research
- Research included an online consumer segmentation to understand the premium chocolate category and consumer, including current and future Theo consumers. For qualitative research, we did both ethnographies and brand equities research online to evaluate the role and meaning of key brand equities. The results included consumer segments, a bullseye consumer target profile, a core consumer insight, and a tangible brief with recommendations for brand evolution.
- Challenge
- Growth had slowed and there was pressure to turn the brand back to positive growth quickly.Before reimagining Theo visually and verbally, we had to understand the premium chocolate consumer, the category and where they fit within it. We wanted to ensure we understood the role of the current brand equities before moving forward. Theo also had great attributes to communicate and part of the challenge was to prioritize the messages that were most meaningful to consumers.
- Realization and Technology
- The project started with a segmentation study to understand the premium chocolate category and consumer, including current and future Theo consumers. Following segmentation, we did a brand equities study to understand what elements were central, supporting and not relevant to Theo's study. From there, we defined a differentiated brand purpose and positioning platform which ultimately inspired the creative idea, Boldly Reimagined.
- Operation and Interaction
- Based on Designalytics’ consumer evaluation and sales performance, it’s clear that shoppers are sweet on the new design. Over the past 6 months, Theo Chocolate’s sales have increased by 11% in the grocery channel compared to the same period during the prior year. The brand has outpaced and contributed to category growth during COVID-19. Moreover, base velocities over the past six months have increased by more than 20% in both grocery and natural channels compared to the same period in 2019. Based on Designalytics’ consumer evaluation and sales performance, it’s clear that shoppers are sweet on the new design.
- Project Duration and Location
- 6 months from kickoff to delivery of final packaging.
- Specifications
- Bars are approximately 3 x 6 inches - paper overwrap with foil inner / cups are approximately 2x4 inches flow-rap on matte substrate
- Keywords
- branding, rebrand, packaging redesign, fairtrade chocolate, brand transformation, future-ready branding, brand purpose
