Image Credit : The Edison Agency
Illustrations by Caitlin Preyser
Project Overview
Launching into the Australian craft beer market is easier said than done. Saturated with local and imported brands, littered with ‘love of beer’ brand narratives and ‘cool’ beer cans - Carbon Six needed to defy industry norms and hold the attention of craft beer lovers.
Project Commissioner
Project Creator
Team
Amber Bonney - Executive Creative Director
Andrew Ashton - Creative Director
Brian Rodrigo Llagas - Design Director
Steve Wren - Business Director
Lead Designer - Caitlin Preyser
Matt O'Connor - Senior Finished Artist
Colin Richardson - Managing Director at Carbon Six
Project Brief
Carbon Six brewery, founded by two Brazilians, one a scientist and the other an experienced brewer, on the sunny coast of Queensland, had a unique story to tell.
A dynamic and adventurous brewery, making beers crafted with utmost precision and creative artistry to deliver an innovative drinking experience – all inspired by a Brazilian attitude to live big and bold.
But launching a new brewery is no simple task - especially in a saturated Australian market where on the last count approximately 740 Australian breweries (plus imported brands) are competing for a share of reducing consumer discretionary spend.
Highlighting a compelling point of difference along with a quality product experience is vital when competing against celebrity-endorsed, and/or award-winning established brands in the market.
Looking to target a discerning craft beer audience, Carbon Six engaged The Edison Agency to design a unique and bold brand narrative, and visual identity system that they could genuinely ‘own’. One that would reflect the bold and energetic vision of the product and founders.
Project Innovation/Need
Carbon Six’s name is inspired by the molecular process of fermentation, where carbon atoms break down into six individual molecules.
This link to the chemistry and scientific elements of the brewing process was a vital narrative arc that reflected the founders experience across biochemistry and attitude towards how intricate detail can affect a beers outcome.
Drawing from the cultural creativity and bold attitudes of its Brazilian founders, this sense of artistic purpose fused with the scientific precision behind Carbon Six’s beer-making process became the foundational story that would shape the brand solution – art meets science in every drop.
Our design solution draws inspiration from Brazilian Brutalism via bold, fluid and colourful motions – contrasted against a clean and minimalist backdrop. This juxtaposition of loud vs quiet conveys a fusion of creativity and scientific precision – the core of what Carbon Six represents.
The ‘six’ of Carbon Six became its own distinctive brand asset, acting as a beacon of bold beer crafting and a shorthand to the brand experience. The wider visual language incorporates grid lines that reflect the molecular atomic table, and exact measurements that underpin every beer Carbon Six produces.
Design Challenge
The Australian craft beer market is highly congested, so being able to find ‘white space;’ that cuts through is difficult. With such a large volume of breweries competing for a small slice of shelf space, we needed to consider digital presence as a channel to bypass retailers and find a direct line of sales with an engaged audience.
The Carbon Six branding project also commenced during the build of the actual brewery itself without a tangible product in hand, meaning that uncovering and realizing the founder's vision was instrumental in establishing an effective design solution.
With this in mind, Carbon Six’s new brand identity needed to;
• Uncover and communicate a genuine reason to consider Carbon Six
• Reflect the quality and flavor credentials of the product
• Create a design system that would ensure a strong shelf presence
• Be highly impactful across digital channels
• Allow for future collaborations and portfolio growth
Effectiveness
The combination of quality ingredients, process, and a Brazilian cultural curiosity, means that every beer produced would be a creative expression of its founders, and would look to defy category conventions.
Along with creating a brand identity that is visually striking and demands attention on the shelf, we upended typical design cues of the category in favor of a bold and vibrant expression, to make good on the brand's unique proposition. To produce a remarkable experience for beer drinkers driven by curiosity and innovation in the category.
Graphic Design - Three Dimensional
This award celebrates creative and innovative design in traditional or digital visual representation of ideas and messages used in packaging. Consideration given to: clarity of communication and the matching information style to audience; the approach, including marketing and branding concerns, the dynamics of the retail environment, environmental considerations, and legal requirements; the component parts of packaging graphics such as colour rationalisation, information layout, feel and tone of illustration and photography, and finishes, and how they are used in isolation and in relation to each other; and the relationship to the anatomy of the structural design.
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