Project Overview

DRINKSOLOGY® were responsible for the naming, creative direction, copywriting, product design, typography, branding, illustration, creation of marketing collateral and website design and build of Red Bonny. A genuine back story was required to ensure the power and longevity of the brand, which could be channelled through our various forms of marketing and illustration. This is where the character of Anne Bonny became essential. One of only two documented female pirates, her colourful life created a wealth of material which could be used to enhance the brand.

The recently launched Red Bonny Rum website provides further insight into the Red Bonny brand and is extremely effective in assisting with the Red Bonny brand strength . Visit www.redbonnyrum.com for further details

Organisation

DRINKSOLOGY®

Team

DRINKSOLOGY® Creative Studio

Project Brief

The brief developed from within our own studio. Paramount was the selection of a product name that could be intrinsically linked into a sustainable marketing campaign. Ideally we wanted a genuine story with a link to both the brands origins in the Caribbean and also to our own Irish roots. ‘Red Bonny’ was chosen, named after one of only two documented female pirates called Anne Bonny. Anne Bonny was born in Kinsale, Co. Cork in Ireland, she turned Pirate and plundered the Caribbean before settling in Virginia, USA. Having selected a name, our brief was to adopt a design and marketing route that would avoid the crass and obvious pirate clichés in favour of something more engaging and up market. Key to maintaining interest on multiple levels was the desire to create a different textural feel to the product and POS which would form a contrast to the marketing materials. It was important that we created a product design that could sustain interest by adapting the design for key outlets.

Project Innovation/Need

Red Bonny Dark Rum branding comprises of bespoke hand rendered typography. Initially drawn by hand the branding was completed in Illustrator before application to the product itself. Quality of finish extends to the application. The Branding has been printed directly onto the bottle using ceramic inks for an authentic finish that feels more hand painted than screen printed.


Marketing collateral comprises of highly detailed illustration that avoids the obvious pirate cues of competing brands, opting instead for a more abstract approach that evokes the character of Anne Bonny; female, sexy and strong. The marketing collateral uses a combination of bespoke photography and stock photography composited into highly detailed illustrations with lavish attention to detail.

In a first for the industry we chose to place half of the bottles in each case into branded bags which proved successful in capturing two shelf lines in retail, rather than the usual one line. Bespoke bags are being created for key accounts in each territory to sustain interest in the product design and increase loyalty to the brand within these accounts.

Design Challenge

Making the stock bottle stand out from competitors, many of which utilise the same bottle was the first challenge. Branding directly onto the bottle is incredibly rare in this category and brings with it many challenges, challenges which are compounded when semi translucent inks have a dark liquid as a backdrop. Ceramic inks where eventually chosen to maintain clarity of colour and add texture.

A pirate theme is masculine by its' very nature. The design team have worked hard to avoid this masculinity not least because it is a crowded concept within the Dark Rum category. The designs shout femininity but in a strong and powerful context befitting of a female pirate who plundered along side men as an equal.

Choosing to illustrate underwater scenes also brought with it challenges as props had to be photographed or sourced that appear to be suspended in water. Sourcing of appropriate clothing was the next hurdle to overcome, as 'vintage pirate' is not the most common fashion on the high street.

Effectiveness

Before the product was even launched the design direction ensured listings with distributors across all key territories and is proving the key to opening the route into the multiples within these territories. Despite utilising a stock bottle the simple design has immediate impact with a highly considered messaging hierarchy, making it stand out on the back bar and retail shelf alike.