Louise Marsland (@Louise_Marsland)’s weekly pick of recent product, packaging and design launches:
- Tashas opens first international store in Dubai
- Premium Cruz Vintage Black Vodka available in South Africa
- James Malone Fabrics now at Hertex, and
- Magnum Cream Liqueur a keepsake.
Tashas takes Dubai
Trendy Tashas from Famous Brands is going global with its first international restaurant having opened up in Dubai recently. Specialist hospitality interior design agency, Design Partnership, was responsible for the new addition to the group’s portfolio and Tashas Dubai got the five-star treatment, with an added glam element for the international clientele while preserving brand authenticity.
In order to survive in the extremely competitive hospitality industry of Dubai, the store needed to be both a daytime café and a nighttime dining venue, and Design Partnership had to factor this into its layout and colour scheme.
“The idea was to replicate the South African-inspired interior for the first international store,” says Neydine Bak, Design Partnership lead designer on the project. “The feel we are going for is warm, friendly, comfortable, light and breezy, but with a slight local twist.”
The colonial style of the Gateway branch is the benchmark for the store in suburban Dubai. The primary material selection remained consistent with the solid timbre, brass, greenery and marble of local stores, all of which were shipped in from SA.
Functional objects such as cutlery and crockery were locally sourced. The intention is to introduce a hint of SA flare to Dubai and, as a result, the works of SA designers are showcased in the interior.
Of course, Tashas’ famous paper ceiling art installations, commissioned for each site with a unique theme for each store, remains a memorable feature. The installation in Dubai was created by Elonah O’Neil Reid from Studio Meer in SA.
Vintage vodka
With only 10 weeks left until Christmas, press releases on new wine and spirits launches and special commemorative bottles are coming faster than the cornucopia of Christmas decorations appearing in store. Just in time to be added to seasonal shopping lists, Cruz Vintage Black Vodka — in an elegant jet black bottle and packaging — just won gold at the Consumers Choice Award at the SIP Awards in California.
Cruz Vintage Black is handcrafted and developed in New York, NY — five-times distilled and three-times charcoal-filtered. It is available in all leading night clubs, premium bars and restaurants, and retails at approximately R199 in leading liquor stores.
Hertex presents James Malone
Hertex Fabrics has been appointed the sole SA distributor and representative for James Malone, a new British editeur based in Spain.
Malone left the UK as a teenager to work for a Spanish textile house, and became involved in the production, selection and colouration of fabric. He now owns the textile house in Malaga, Spain, producing colourful textile fabrics with the influence of vibrant Spain mixed with English country living.
The prints are bold and colourful and beautiful. I can see a couch in my future in the black and white pattern…
Indulgent liqueur
Now I think Magnum Cream Liqueur is a cool festive season gift too (hint, hint) because it comes with a reusable stainless flask with screw-top and handles — waste not! Plus the brand, created from single-malt Scotch whisky and real Dutch cream, has just been awarded a gold medal at the 2014 San Francisco World Spirits Awards.
The luxurious cream liqueur is described as being smooth and creamy, with “hints of caramel, chocolate and rich toffee” and an alcohol content of 17%.
Magnum Cream is widely available nationally at liquor retailers, the 1 litre flask retailing for approximately R129 and the 750ml flask at about R109. (I think we should rename this column ‘Christmas shopping ideas’ for the rest of 2014!)
Shelf Life is a weekly column by Louise Marsland on MarkLives. Tweet new product, packaging and design launches to @louise_marsland 
or email her at louise.marsland at gmail.com. Want to sponsor Shelf Life? Contact us here.
Louise has written about the FMCG, media, marketing and advertising industry for 20 years as a former editor of magazines AdVantage, Marketing Mix and Progressive Retailing, as well as websites Bizcommunity.com and FMCGFiles. She also edited the weekly Wednesday Media & Marketing Page for The New Age newspaper. She is currently the publishing editor of industry trendwatching portal, TRENDAFRiCA, for consumer insight, research and trends in Africa; a regular industry columnist and speaker; a consultant on content strategy; and contributing editor to Fast Company South Africa magazine, which has just launched in South Africa.
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