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The first project run by our office in Mexico couldn’t be more emblematic – the creation of a fresh visual identity system for Olmeca Altos Tequila. In order to create a new global expression of the brand which is sold more than 51 countries – Mexico, United States and the UK being the lead markets – we pulled together a dedicated team of creative experts from our CBA LatAm + CBA London offices, a partnership that combines local cultural expertise and global systems vision.
Olmeca Altos Tequila is a super-premium brand that honours the quality and tradition of true Mexican Tequila – from the planting and harvesting of the agave to the distillation and ageing process – the brand is full of features that evoke Mexico’s cultural heritage.
Our challenge was to rethink Olmeca Altos’ visual identity system to reflect the brand’s essence, highlighting its authenticity and showcasing the energy and vitality of contemporary Mexico in a fresh, engaging and iconic way.
To create Olmeca Altos Tequila’s new identity, we used CBA’s Brand Senses methodology – which explores the expression of the brand through all five senses – to establish the brand principles and create the foundations to develop a flexible design system able to provide versatility and rhythm to different communication occasions.
We celebrated the iconic Olmeca Altos bottle as the core element of the brand’s new visual universe, symbolising the quality and authenticity of the spirits creation, as well as the human and artisanal touch. The characteristic shape of Olmeca Altos’ hammered bottle becomes the brand signature, distinguishing it from the other tequilas.
To support the iconic bottle, we built an identity system to convey the complete brand story. To demonstrate the brand’s contrasts and vivacity, we used the iconic blue as our base but built in additional tonal colours to create diversity and pace. We redefined the typography and photographic style with fresh expressions of modern Mexico; and through our authentic and sustainable materials palette we suggested on-trade and and off-trade environments that allowed our consumers to feel the Olmeca Altos experience.
In total the new design system for Olmeca Altos Tequila showcases not only the tradition of the Mexican culture but also its contemporary sophistication.
Through our final toolkit we have armed Olmeca Altos with all the necessary tools to communicate consistently and with a celebratory attitude. The outcome is a dynamic brand experience, richly representing the many authentic facets of Mexico.
Imagine the responsibility of working with a product that is present in Peruvians’ lives since 1927. Sublime counts on a huge penetration in Peru and lots of meanings to its consumers: the chocolate for relaxing from everyday pressure, childhood’s taste, affection at any time.
Relevant to all those who consume it and to Nestlé Peru (the country’s second most important brand), the brand needed to revitalize its story, renew its identity and, through its iconic and proprietary features, settle its importance in the context of national market.
As a long-time partner, CBA accepted the challenge of reworking Sublime brand through an extensive branding perspective: brand architecture, visual identity, packaging, and finally a global vision integrated with all of the brand’s touch points.
As of Sublime’s essence, “Recarga el buen ánimo”, we proposed to build an extremely structured design system to work its strong identity in a way to contemplate all touch points and reinforce the portfolio strategy.
Along with Nestlé Peru’s marketing, research and innovation teams, CBA B+G carried out an extensive workshop on Brand Senses, a methodology for exploring the brand’s five senses and helping the establishment of the guiding principles of the whole brand identity. The contrast and joy on the colors (vision), the rhythm, the smile, the laughing inspired by the brand (sound), the product’s crunchiness with those little pieces mixed to the chocolate (palate).
Working on the brand’s senses was critical to the next step: exploring different insights to the same message of the brand’s optimism, respecting its essence and its expression territory.
The new identity kept the brand’s proprietary elements, although they were evolved: the trace became a smile and its color system was totally redefined in a way to get closer to Sublime’s inherent senses:
A balance between the iconic blue and silver but added to a color palette full of energy.
We carried out countless material tests and colors to get to the desired contrast. We studied the application of the substrates in different materials, paperboard, laminated – and how it would react when in display racks; we highlighted the contrasts between matte, brightness and color.
Besides recreating all design system and developing a guide on the brand’s use and application (‘brand look’), the most incredible outcome was its cross impact: total integration with the brand communication. As of a consistent and collective work of renewing the identity, JWT, the agency responsible for the brand’s communication adopted a new positioning, the internal staff restructured its product portfolio, the event agency applied the brand’s new concepts as well.
A great case of commitment and integration, which is worth a relevant brand such as Sublime.
This project won one of the four awards we have earned in the Effie Awards 2019 (Peru), an internationally renowned and respected award in the marketing and communication industry. Sublime received a prize for the advertising campaign “Vístete con una Sonrisa”.
This project won the Nielsen Design Impact Awards 2019, a global award that highlights cases of packaging redesign, assessing them as marketing tools. Prestígio’s packaging redesign stood out for increasing the brand’s sales by 46% after the new packaging reached the POS. In 2018, it was also awarded for ABRE Brazilian Packaging Award and Grandes Cases de Embalagem.
Prestígio is natural coconut, Prestígio is Brazil.
Created in 1961, and up to now a synonym for homemade recipes with coconut and chocolate, Prestígio is a genuine Brazilian chocolate deservedly recognized as one of Brazil’s symbolic brands.
Attentive to consumers’ tendencies and desire for more and more natural products, the Swiss multinational, as a leader in products which join nutrition, health and wellness, decided to renew the Prestígio brand. The preservation of its ‘natural coconut origin’ essence was established as the main goal, and CBA B+G was invited to the challenge of reconnecting the brand with its Brazilian chocolovers.
Despite being a traditional brand, preserving its memory is important.
So we started off from the brand’s archeology, in a way to rescue its codes and original shapes and visuals, the fundamental elements for settling down Prestígio’s essence and positioning. In order to grasp the real meaning behind the visual codes and reconnect them with its target audience, we carried out dense exploratory researches, both quantitative and qualitative, always checking the brand’s preliminary concepts and triggers. The research oriented a creative process that gathered strategy, research and design staff.
Hundreds of consumers from several Brazilian states were considered in a deep semiotic study with lots of learnings. We also carried out the Brand Senses methodology, which explores the brand’s five senses and orients the guiding principles that would shape the creative path to reconnecting with its identity: fresh air, nature sounds, the perfect combination of natural coconut and chocolate flavors.
The outcome from the strategy and design works was the translation of all we heard from Prestígio consumers. Its iconic elements – the red color, the textures and the coconut were kept on, although represented in a more natural and authentic way. The sign typography, also recalling a more natural and truthful feeling. On the packaging, wooden boards, slivered ingredients, details in green – nature showing off closer to reality. The boxes were finished with embossment and textures to reinforce the brand’s sensorial aspect. An authentic simplicity to the exact Prestígio extent.
How to keep updated at the age of 60? This is Neston’s challenge, a brand that was born decades ago with the aim of contributing for a healthier and more balanced nutrition, and which is still faithful to its purpose until today. However, the world and the people have evolved a great deal since 1958, and to realign the brand communication we, from CBA B+G, were asked to reposition the brand.
Although the company was aware of its target audience – generation Z people (born between 1995-2010), also known as centennials – Neston decided to broaden its knowledge of these youths and get to know their habits better so to connect to their needs.
To develop the new brand positioning we deeply immersed in the food routine of dozens of youths from generation Z, to understand Neston’s function.
We started this in-depth study carrying out a qualitative research with a significant sample of young consumers and potential consumers of the cereal. We used an online multimedia tool which allowed for a deep analysis – during 5 days in a row, the youths filled out an online diary with interactive activities, which enabled the identification of consumer drivers and needs of the target audience. The great differential of this tool was the possibility of obtaining more spontaneous insights, since the language used is closer to the codes used by young people to express themselves, such as apps and social media.
Based on this survey we were able to map territories where Neston could operate for an ideal brand expression.
Once the brand territory was defined, the next step was to rethink the visual identity. For that purpose we used our Brand Senses methodology, that analyses the brand through the 5 senses on an approach that aims to enhance the basic features and properties of the product: satisfy hunger combining different textures – dry or wet, crispy or creamy, yet always healthy. And always in movement, constantly energetic and vibrant.
The visual identity is nearing completion and will be the outcome of this deep analysis of the target audience. Stay tuned, cause soon Neston will get a new look – connected to the youths and their needs for movement and nutrition.
The new visual identity developed translates the deep analysis conducted with the target consumer – urban youth that move and recreate their surrounding world; people who speak up, talk, recognize their flaws and continually reinvent themselves. The visual codes were inspired on their language, in a collage of styles. The movement emerging from the letter ‘O’ sweeping and twirling all around; the imperfect-textured font; the intensity and freedom represented by the natural colors. As the target audience would say: fuel up, set off and enjoy the ride. It’s excitement and nutrition. It’s Neston.
