Aidan Cooke Re-enforcing the Brand Packaging Brief U1251161
Brand: Johnnie Walkers Product: Aftershave Title: Keep Walking
TID1162-1314: 1314 Graphic Design Professional Practice
Tophat The Tophat could be seen as symbol of wealth, a key element used that relates to the targetted audience of the businessmen.
Cane The cane could be seen to contain connotations of strength and power, with it being quite an old fashioned object that is used by wealthy men as an assistant for walking and commonly being recognised as a symbol of money and higherarchy. I will consider these objects when producing my logo design.
Walking The focus on the man walking forward could be seen as a reflection to the commonly used slogan accomodated with the Johnnie Walkers Whisky, this giving the idea of moving forward and striding towards success.
Cap A simple and sophisticated shape and form for the lid of the bottle, with the Johnnie Walkers title written in script around the cap.
Symbol The symbol that is highlighted on the bottle is a detail in which indicates that the product is at appointment to her Royal Majesty the Queens Manufacters, this is a detail I may consider applying to my aftershave product for further professional outcomes.
Label The label highlighted on this bottle is angled at a 24 degree angle, with a clean and simple design including all of the relevant information. It is important that I conform to this 24 degree angle in my own designs to be accurate in my own design and have a legible outcome
Typeface There is an interesting range of different fonts being used on this label, with a variation in sizes and effects applied to vary the bottles outcome.
Logo One of the most significant elements on the bottle is the logo itself, with it being quite large in order to represent the brand itself and allow easy identification to the audience, however this also being confirmed by the strict design features conformed to ie. the labels angle.
Details Further details added in order to establish a finished outcome include the more signficant details focused on the product itself as well as the companies own personal history, I will also consider including these details myself for further professional outcomes.
Johnnie Walkers Label Selections. Johnnie Walkers is known as being one of the top of the range whiskey products on todays market, with a variety of different beverages to choose from, this variation being identified by the brands labels. The way this feature is applied is the selection of products are all labelled in a different colour, varying from blue and red labels, to gold and platinum.The red label is the most original of all, being the main label type to identify the product as it is the first existing product created. However, the varietation in labels all signify the difference in products, with only minor differences between each one however with them all having different purposes for obtainment, ie. some are for gatherings whereas others are based on just a relaxing beverage. I could apply this ‘label variation’ to my own product development, with a new introduction to a selection of label colours for the new aftershave line. This could be quite an interesting feature, as it has already been applied in areas of the perfume industry, this being done by companies including Ralph Lauren in there different coloured products. This is something that I will further consider during the process of my project, perhaps producing an original label and then further progressing onto this variety of colours to add a new element and a bit of flare to the product itself.
Johnnie Walkers 1910 Design. Displayed to the left is the Johnnie Walkers 1910 commemorative edition designed by Love Studios. This is a very fascinating and intruiging design with a strong focus on shanghai tradition in the artwork, with a blue and white theme being applied and a very simple approach, with not much detail in response to the actual product itself, with no noticeable indication towards the 24 degree angled label being applied, and no use of the original typefaces or logo being identified. What I find in particularly interesting is the continuity displayed in the range of bottles, with each individual design being reflective of one another and all working together to product almost a collection of bottles. A further interesting nature of this is the fact this does relate back to typical elements of Johnnie Walkers collection, with the existing collection for the Johnnie Walkers collecting, this originally being based on a colour collection. This fascinating style of design could possibly be applied to my own design in a similar way, having an in particular reflection on whatever I choose to develop my packaging around the theme of. This could be fascinating, however with the product only being released, I believe that this style of design could be produced in the future dependant on the success of the product itself, with this ‘unique’ design being a possible indication for an anniversary of the launch of the new brand.
Johnnie Walkers Diamond Jubilee. This design displayed to the right is Johnnie Walkers Special Edition, Diamond Jubilee Bottle this being of course a product which was specifically produced for the Diamond Jubilee. The product itself is an brilliant example of design, with a sophisticated outcome and enginuity, this being due to the structural nature of the product being brilliant, with the diamond shaped bottle sitting in this frame that creates a very clean and visally pleasing nature. The product itself is also reflective of the actually discussion itself also with this expensive visually outcome, with the diamond bottle top that it used on the top of the bottle, as well as the overall structure of the bottle, and the class nature of the fact that the product is actually Johnnie Walkers. Even though I would not personally be able to create a packaging design at this standard, it does still have some elements of inspiration to me as I can consider the idea of creating a frame for the packging to sit in, as this design here as produced this effect so well and effectively that it does inspire me to produce a design like this myself.
Johnnie Walkers Porsche Design. Porsche are renoundly known for designing a wide range of beautiful vehicles, however the designers at Porsche linked in with Jack Daniels and produced this beautiful concept packaging, with a very futuristic, modern approach, with an element of the companies vehicle design presented in the product itself also. This is highlighted through the use of materials, such as the titanium shell that it is encased in as well as the under glow lights featured. Displayed is two seperate designs for the Porsches approach to Johnnie Walkers alcohol product, with them producing a packaging design specifically focused on the bottle itself, and another packaging design for using glasses and other utilities to make your experience easier. I also find the idea of the lid being an ice chamber interesting as it adds a further interest feature to the packaging, creating a great impact and use for the product itself.
I personally find this packaging design inspirational to my own future works as I could consider this idea of a sleeve for the packaging, as well as using a set of different materials in order to produce a creative and professional packaging design. However, due to the element of cost I would be unable to utilise the materials such as the ones Porsche have used here, however I could design a few mock ups to represent the ideas that I would want to apply in my very own packaging designs. I also find the idea of making a few certain areas of the packaging useful for further use being an interesting element that I could possibly consider when designing my own product, as this will then allow my product to be better than existing after shave products on the shelves.
Johnnie Walkers Black Label. The design displayed to the left is one of the pieces of advertising in order to celebrate Johnnie Walkers 100 Year Anniversary bottle. The interesting nature of this design is the structural element, with the shape fragments all working along with one each other to make a really interesting effect. This structural design could be quite an interesting approach to take myself by applying this style of design to my actual product itself. I also find the simple use of colours using only black white and grey, with this trong feature colour of yellow being applied to create a bold and striking effect in the packaging. When producing my own design I will take this colour element into consideration, ensuring that I use a strict selection of colours in order to create a theme to my own design in a similar manner to the design seen on the right. I also find that layout and composition of this design to be fascinating, with an equal balance in layout in order to be complimentary to the audience and their eye, not being too distruptive to them.
Johnnie Walkers Blue Label. The installation displayed to the left was one of the first large installations produced by Johnnie Walkers, this being displayed in an airport in Thailand, with a very interesting product being presented in the Thai airport, being an advertisement for Johnnie Walkers Blue Label product. The interesting nature of this is the fact that the company have used the back lighting in order to represent the product that is advertised, opposed to using the typical label. It is also clearly surrounded by the Blue Label logo in order to have a clarity of what the product does represent however I believe that this was acheived without the logo being used anyway. I would not be able to actually produce anything of this sort in my own designs, however I could take into consideration the idea of using lighting and further details in order to display my product whilst doing my photography of the final packaging design. This could be quite an interesting feature as it could add a new element to my design and further my the over all professional nature of the product itself and add a slight bit of flare to my photography and create a further aesthically pleasing visual.
Johnnie Walkers Keep Walking. Johnnie Walkers Slogan is Keep Walking, and this has been carried through with Johnnie Walkers title since they began. After watching a few videos which discuss the history of Johnnie Walkers, the slogan of Keep Walking is discussed in how this was developed. The way this slogan was developed is based upon Johnnie Walkers journey, starting out as a young adult who aspired to go on this adventure around the world, taking his product with him and advertising it to the world and expressing the product to as many different cultures as possible in order to gain the best target audience possible. Target audience is a very important element that I must consider when producing my own packaging as it is important that the packaging is appealing to the targetted age range that I want to apply my product to. However, due to the product being bought by so many different age ranges across the market, I think it would be more affective to target the product at an audience who are more ‘upper class’ with a very smart and clean edge to the design to appeal to this upper class audience.
Johnnie Walkers Name Generation. In order to generate a suitable name for my after shave product, I decided to produce a mind map as seen to the left, focusing all of the different elements that relate back to the product itself, including colour and materials that relate, as well as the underlying connotations in response to the product. Even though I generated a large variety of different words, I did not believe any of them were interesting enough to title my product. This is when I decided to take a step back and title the product something suitable and is recognisable in response to Johnnie Walkers, this is where I decided to title the product quite simply, the existing slogan Keep Walking. I found this quite interesting as it had a clear link with the product itself and as the term keep walking was not in particularly used as a title for the product, it seemed suitable to apply it to the new range of aftershave being released, as this links back to Johnnie Walkers adventure and his journey and progress onto new areas with in the marketting industry.
Logo Typeface Development. With a title for my new product final distinguished, I was then able to move onto discovering what sort of typeface I would want to apply in order to represent my title. I decided to explore a variety of fonts, I did keep a consistant upper case style as I found this did work well all around. I also decided to use a couple of my own personally designed typefaces, these do include Penultimate, Second and Enigma. Once I had explored these typefaces I went back over them to review the general outcomes and found that certain fonts such as helvetica and futura had some rather interesting features, however were lacking the true impact I wanted to take on my audience. Also, I felt that the Adobe Garamond Pro typeface would not work due to the serif format being to similar to the Johnnie Walkers typeface itself. This left me with my own typefaces to choose from, narrowing this down was made quite simple as I found the Second font did not achieve what I wanted it to and did not conform to the professional outlook I was hoping for. Also, I found that the Penultimate typeface made the words Keep Walking look almost out of balance, therefore leaving me with the Enigma font, the one which when I look at the collection, I personally believe to be the best in reflection to what it is being used for.
Sketches of my Johnnie Walker aftershave logo development.
Logo Design Development. With a typeface finally discovered, I was then able to move onto the development of my personal logo which I would apply to my packaging. I decided to take the existing components out of the original logo in order for a clear reflection and a similarity to be made between the two logos, therefore I selected the cane and the tophat in order to experiment with as I developed my own logo. Most of my designs focused on the matter of shape, and forming a shape around the existing two objects, however also manipulating these two objects in certain ways to work along side one another and produce interesting visuals for the overall design. With these deisgns, I had to then yet again focus on which one I personally thought was the best to then carry forward into final development for my actual packaging. This is where I decided to use the design with a hexagon form, and a simple J W initial typed at either side, using the canes in order to form a cross shape and the top hat to sit above the cross almost in the style of a skull and crossbones. I personally find this design to be the most successful as it has an over all professional image, and would work nice on a packaging design along side the existing Johnnie Walkers logo. I also believe that the design is clean and easy to read and does reflect well on the brand in which I am discussing.
Final Logo Development. With a logo design founded I could then go on to further development and the finalisation of the logo design in order to make it appealing to the target audience, having a professional manner and linking back to the original brands itself well. The individual step by step process for doing this can be seen here with the individual construction of the logo from the start to finish, taking the components such as the hat and cane out of the original logo and manipulating them in a manner to suit my own logo design. I find personally that this design has working successfully, with a clear understanding and representation of the original brand Johnnie Walkers itself.
The final logo featured in only black has quite a nice manner about it and impacts well on the design of the logo, as this is the colour as well as white, that the original logo is most often featured in. I will be taking further experiments to see how the logo can be applied on different surfaces, this being in further preperation for ongoing advertisement which I will take out for the release of the brand new product. I will use images that represent the idea of walking and journeys in reflection to the title of the product itself, Keep Walking. This then leaving a theme and a set of connotations fixed around the product and allowing the advertising campaign to be successful.
Johnnie Walkers Aftershave Logo applied on a photograph featuring a natural setting.
Keep Walking Logo. Here is the Keep Walking logo in its final format, in this case being embossed in gold onto a black card, this being quite an expensive and classy perspective of the logo oppose to the previous flat, simple tones used for representing the logo. In an ideal situation it would be in best spirit to print the logo in this style on my final packaging product, however due to the matter of expenses I would be unable to go forward and print the logo in this format, however it could be possible to further pursuit the packaging product dependant on its success rate, and revisit the project in the future, printing it in this desired format ready to present to possible investors in the projects idea. In reflection of this however, I do find the material that this mock up design to be printed on quite an interesting choice, and something that I will quite like to invest in when printing my packaging due to the smooth nature of the material and how it also has a suede feel to it.
Johnnie Walkers orientated mood board.
Inspiration towards packaging designs.
Typical materials assoicatied with the brand identity.
Brown Leather, Black Leather, Metal, Suits.
Materials associated with the Scottish background of the product.
Tweed, Wood, Tartan.
Packaging Examples. Displayed above are a family of packaging designs for the Johnnie Walkers whisky product, with a very visually pleasing appraoch to packaging design with a very artistic and experimental approach. I find the linear approach to the design to be quite fascinating, illustrating these interesting dragons in reflection to the Thailand collection. I also like the fact that the designers decided to invert the original design, with a fixed approach to this black and gold theme, how ever applying it in a whole new manner just through the simple movement of inverting the colours. On top of the dragon designs there is also this packaging design featured on the right hand side with the logo of the walking man being the main feature. However, this is not just the simple logo, it has been modified in order to create a new image for the brand and be
much more visually satisfying for the audiences eye, with almost this flame like edge rippling away from the gentleman, as well as the scaled skin thats been applied all over the character in order to add a new level of material and texture to the piece. I also like the minimalist approach in this packaging, using only the simple elements of the logo, typefaces and the relevant text to add, however having such a visually satisfying outcome. Once again, the company have used a black and gold approach in their packaging design, as this does leave the element of class and wealth in the designs, two features commonly being associated with the brand itself. This is a theme that I could consider using in my own packaging design however due to print costs a ‘cheap’ version could come out poor quality and lack this expensive look.
The original labels associated with Johnnie Walkers.
Red Label, Black Label, Green Label, Gold Label, Blue Label.
Johnnie Walkers Label Packaging. Displayed here are some of the original set of label packaging designs by Johnnie Walkers, with a nice display of visual experimentation, showing a theme being continuous between the bottle design and the packaging design. I personally enjoy the ways that the three packaging designs are all easy to relate between one another and link back to the original components recognised with Johnnie Walkers, such as the logo and the typefaces, however they do all have a personal theme between themselves. I also like the different use of materials used on each of the packaging designs, using a black embossment on the blue, this being overlayed with a gold foil in order to have an expensive feel to the packaging piece. Also seen on these packaging designs is the custom logo or crest in response to Johnnie Walkers, this being embroided on a much larger scale on two of these packaging designs, using different methods of print in order to represent this.
Aftershave Packaging. Shown to the left are a selection of examples of the existing mens aftershaves that are on sale today. I found that through looking into existing packaging designs I was able to take an understanding of my competition in this industry. These products are well known for being some of the top existing brands on todays market, and are exactly the sort of products that I want to see my own aftershave being amongst. When focusing on these packaging designs I am able to take further inspiration in design as well as detail which I should consider including in my own design. I find it quite clear that the main details found on the front of the design to focus the logo, title and the original brand name. Also, the area at the bottom of the packaging design should reveal the amount of perfume in each box. Another feature that is clear to me is that the background information of the product is not often presented on the side of the packaging. I also like the choice of materials used in the package, with a shiny gloss feel on several designs, with a few designs being much more smooth and matte based.
Ralph Laurens Colour Collection. This is the Ralph Lauren collection, where they used colour in order to seperate the different products. I find the way in which they segregated the different products using colour as well as numbers so simple yet effective that it works in a very similar fashion to Johnnie Walkers alcohol selection, with them using labels and colours in order to seperate each product. I find that this approach could work very well in my favour in reflection to this project, with the idea of developing a set of aftershave products all using the same design however having different colours as well as titles to seperate the products identity. I also like the simple approach to the actual bottle design, with a large imprint of the logo placed on the coloured background, with a contrasting printed colour of the number of the product. I also find the use of layering in these designs fascinating, with the print of the logo on the back of the product, and then the coloured number being printed on the front of the product. If I was to approach this style of design in my own works, I would consider relating it further back to the idea of the labels, reflecting on the Johnnie Walkers brand.
Packaging Sketches. With a sufficient amount of supporting research I was now able to begin the process of sketching out my packaging design concepts, ready for further design and preperation for the final outcome. I decided to sketch the various packaging formats in response to the brief in order to make my product be the at the highest standard and to be the most recognisable if it was to be published and placed on a shelf amongst the other existing brands. The main ideas around the idea of the packaging focused on the typical angles used in the Johnnie Walkers packaging designs. In my designs I took inspiration from products such as the Porsche design, however this being in a simpler format and to a much smaller scale. Following these sketches I can now go onto progress in producing digital mock ups of some of these sketch designs, in order to give me a more realistic visual representation. With this I can then make a finalised decision on my packaging format, this then leaving me with an opportunity to begin actual designing the packaging itself. I found that through doing sketches of my packaging, it was a fast and simple method for gathering design formats quickly and efficiently.
Packaging Format Concepts.
Development Process.
Packaging Net Design. Displayed to the left is my final packaging mock up concept, with a sleeve being made which will wrap around the bottom of the simple, rectangular design. I find that this design is the most successful as it is simple and works effectively, with an opportunity to create an effective design. With this I have got the chance to adapt my design to two different objects, using different colours for each part of the packaging perhaps, as well as even incorporating imagery to the bottom half perhaps. I also have the chance to take a minimalist approach for the main rectangular packaging, then using the sleeve in order to add the more important pieces of information. With this concept now produced, I will now be able to begin producing a set of designs that work around this packaging concept. I will experiment with a set of different colours and design layouts in order to produce the most successful outcome in reflection to the project brief, as well as in relation to the original Johnnie Walkers product itself.
Packaging Development. In order to gather an understanding for the design approach I would like to take for my own packaging project, focusing strictly on the front of the package design just as a way to gather a concept idea which I can further pursuit and work with when designing the rest of the packaging piece. Each design explores a use of the original concepts in relation to the Johnnie Walkers product, such as the label angle and the title typeface. I also included the product amount on the bottom of each design, as well as my own logo being presented on each design. I personally find that the 4th design is the most appealing with the logo that I designed linking in with the original angled label in order to create this interesting effect.
Final Packaging Development. In response to the previous development process, I was able to continue my designs and beign creating the further details that would be applied around the outside of the packaging, this including the different ingredients used to create the product as well as the company headquarters and the strict details such as recycling symbols and flammable warnings. Through adding these sort of details there is a realistic view of the product, giving it a much more professional edge ready to be presented on the shelves amongst all of the other products to be sold. When desiged the rest of the packaging I stuck to a continuous black white and grey colour scheme, as it was simple and easy to read, as well as being very simple and plain ready to be expanded into a colour collection in the future. However due to it being the first product I found it important to have a much more simple nature oppose to immediately starting off a collection of the product, when I am unaware of the success of the product itself to begin with. I also kept a level of consistency in my designs by using the angled linear formats on the back of the packaging design, with this being in consideration of the sleeve that I will later be developing for my own packaging design.
Final Packaging Design. Displayed are all of the final packaging components in development of my packaging project. These were all designed using Adobe Illustrator and focus on the rectangular based packaging design, as well as the sleeve that I will be developing to wrap around the bottom of my packaging. I find this design to be very successful in reponse to the brief as it contains some of the components in relation to the original Johnnie Walkers packaging, as well as having my personal touch in order to make the brand my own design. I also find that the neutral colours work well, and the darker coloured sleeve will be quite nice as it shall create a contrast between the two, allowing it to be recognisable as a sleeve to the audience which will be easy to remove if desired.
Main packaging sleeve.
Outer packaging sleeve.
Assembling the Packaging. With my design printed, I was then able to begin the process of assembling the packaging, carefully using a stanley knife in order to cut aroun the design, and then using double sided tape in order to stick and hold the packaging design together well. This was a rather enjoable process, ensuring that each cut was perfect as the slightest mistake could have resulted in the product failing to construct correctly. However, I found that the product folded successfully and it was overall a success with a professional outcome. I used a material called ‘Silk Art Board’ in order to print my product after confering with my local printer he said that this would be the best product to print on due to its high GSM, as well as the nice finish it leaves. His judgement was correct and evidently it shows in the printed version displayed.
A cut out version of the packaging, ready to be assembled and stuck together.
The first photograph revealing the final printed packaging assembled together.
Personal Photo Studio. Having my packaging design now assembled I was then able to undergo the process of photographing my product ready for advertisement. Due to a lack of studio space available, I decided to create my own studio through the equipment I had available. As a start I decided to visit my local art suppliers and buy myself a nice background paper that would be used as the studios background setup. Once I had bought this I then fixed the paper to a flat surface and up a wall, then I used a couple of iPhones and the torch feature on them in order to create a balanced light effect for the studio set up. With this I was then able to go onto photographing my project in a semi-pro setting and studio space. I personally believe that the studio worked successfully and the final photograph outcomes were professional as well as suitable for my packaging brief.
Photographing the Product. With a suitable studio space set up ready to photo my product, I was then able to begin the process. I adjusted the lighting throughout the photoshoot as it then brough variety to my photographs, along side this I also re-assembled the layout of the packaging, looking at different areas of the product itself as well as different ways of representing the product. I feel that the overall photoshoot was a success, with strong variety in my photographs as well as clean, clear and professional photos being produced. I also believe the background I decided to use was successful as this conveyed a typical advertisement setting that is seen in the professional industry, as well as it being plain and easy to work with when further editing my designs. The following pages reveal the various outcomes and photographs captured throughout my photoshoot, I believe that the photographs as a collection is nice as well as being individual photographs. I also edited the photographs on VSCOCam in order to add filters which were professional and worked well with all my existing photographs and fit the theme I wanted to set for my product.
The front perspective of the packaging.
The top and bottom areas of the packaging and the sleeve.
The top of the packaging.
Up close perspectives of the packaging as well as the box with its sleeve.
The advertising photograph of the packaging box with its sleeve.
Advertising Campaign. To finalise my product I decided to begin a campaign advertising the product, this through online adverts on social networking websites including Twitter, also I encorporated the product onto the existing Johnnie Walkers website as an extension, and finally printed pieces of advertising. This as a collection is what I believe to be a strong stepping stone for spreading the word for this new up and coming product. If the product was to be released I would take much more care and consideration in my advertising designs, I did not do this though as it was not compulsary for the project and wasn’t one of the main elements that I must focus on. I also tried to keep some form of theme running in my advertising campaign in order to create a design that would be continuous and allow the audience to start recognising this brand through the colour used and the design layout applied. I used images that were previously shown in the project, as well as my photographs taken in the photoshoot in order to do this, this being overall successful.
A twitter page created for Social Networking advertising of the new product.
Adjustments to the website to fit the new aftershave product.
A gallery on the website revealing the photographs of the product itself.
An outdoor advertising print campaign.
Posters feature the product itself, the new logo and the products title.