On the Shelf & Online

Retail Packaging

Designing product packaging in any retail setting requires several levels of design-thinking, whether online or on-shelf at brick & mortar stores. In a world full of products, impact and authenticity are key for product success. Often, it is a balancing act between impact, brand stewardship, and fitting all the required information without feeling cluttered.

In package design, we think through the entire sale process. Selecting product packaging materials and understanding how design will scale in different settings all inform the integrity of the design. We may also review weight and dimensions of shippable products, or eco-friendly packaging, like compostable bags or recycled boxes.

Managing Quality, Cost, and Efficiency: Discovering pathways to improve waste efficiency, postage break points, and packaging cost is an art. We determine these pathways together based on your specific needs through communication, trusted vendors, and new research. I love consulting with clients to guide projects toward successful outcomes for long-term cost efficiency and high-quality materials with an emphasis on recycled or compostable packaging.

I recommend working with a consultant to advise you on legal requirements associated with your product. For your reference, I’ve compiled a basic resource list to share with clients.

Packaging Feature

Eli’s Hot Rockin’ Cereal

My friend Eli is amazing. He’s a professional contractor who remodeled his own house. He invented and patented a beautiful, easy-install flat roof flashing system called CoFlash. And now he has brought his own hot cereal recipe to market and it can be purchased at coops and grocery stores throughout the Twin Cities, or you can buy a hot cereal 10-pack online. We collaboratively designed the packaging to feature his drawing of cereal bowl on a skateboard. Some people think it’s a spoon, but we’re ok with that! It’s cool, it’s fun, and it stands out on a shelf. Part of the road and the top of the bowl are clear, showing the cereal inside the bag. We worked diligently together to find the visual rhythm for this product that felt right to his aesthetic. The logo, which we designed together as well, was adjusted and sized for placement on locally-screen printed Hot Rockin’ t-shirts that Eli envisioned in an awesome color palette and array of styles.

Eli has been making this hot cereal for 20 years and now everyone can have it. It’s healthy, made with organic ingredients, it’s anti-glop, and kids love it! (Including his own.) It’s in regular rotation for breakfast at my house too.

Packaging Feature

Historical Remedies

It’s not always easy to take over a project that was conceived by a different designer, but in this case it’s been a joy. It’s important to uphold the visual integrity of these popular nation-wide homeopathic lozenge products while refining and updating their design to keep them relevant in the marketplace. The foil-stamped and embossed packages for this family of trusted products stands out on shelves. Robert and I relish fussing over small touches that improve the brand, like designing a stamp that celebrates the company’s achievement for over 30 years of business.

Packaging Feature

Kopplin’s Coffee

These letterpress bags feel as special as the in-house roasted coffee tastes.

Color was used to indicate bean variety: green for coffee; blue for premium coffee; and brown for espresso. A Select Origin sticker further highlights the specialty coffee.

Kopplin’s Coffee hand-selects and locally-roasts their coffee beans. The Good Taste sub-brand was created to compliment Kopplin’s primary brand and emphasize roasting their own quality beans. Together, the Kopplin’s Coffee and Good Taste brands signify a consistent and quality product, sold in their coffee shop as well as select local restaurants.

In an effort to reduce to-go waste, reusable thermal Keep Cups joined local maker products on the cafe’s retail shelves. Adorning them with the artful Good Taste illustration, rather than the cafe logo, was a purposeful decision to appeal to consumers while encouraging waste reduction.

Packaging Feature

Cedar Summit Farm

We assisted Cedar Summit Farm in their call for public support while in a legal battle with a utility company. During this time, we worked together to reimagine their logo, create public awareness campaigns, and implement refreshed design into new environmentally-conscious packaging, which included recyclable and returnable bottles.

Despite the publicity, the financial repercussions were great. The 100-year-old family farm closed its doors in 2015, a sad outcome for the family and all who supported the 100% grass-fed dairy farm. The legacy of their commitment to values lives on through their story, and I am proud of our work together during my years with Good Work Group.