Cheryl Hunter (shelflife at marklives.com)’s weekly pick of all things new — product, packaging, design, insight, food, décor and more!
- SA designer creates Chivas packaging
- Deep Design’s Afro-futuristic campaign kicks off
- King Price launches a bellowing billboard
- 150 years of Jack Daniels
Xhosa creation for Chivas
Chivas Regal, a Design Indaba 2016 sponsor, brought local fashion designer Laduma Ngxokolo, now based in Italy where he is studying textile design, to South Africa for last week’s event (where his shawl was crowned the Most Beautiful Object in SA for 2016). Using only products sourced from his home province, the Eastern Cape, his design business has been thriving and he was chosen to design the limited-edition Chivas Regal 18-year-old pack — the first South African chosen to do so in Chivas Regal history.
Shelf Life: What inspired the design for the new pack?
Laduma Ngxokolo: I used the original designs from my 2011 collection as inspiration for the Chivas Regal Limited Edition 18YO packaging. This design is also my signature design and trademark of the MaXhosa brand.
SL: What was the idea behind the design — what does it represent?
LN: The “X” pattern was specifically chosen for the brand and it represents the heritage of the Xhosa people and my MaXhosa. The rough outline has the same rough texture of what you would find in the “X” pattern when done in beadwork.
SL: Does great packaging design sell a product and why?
LN: I definitely think it does. The first glance a consumer has of a product is of its packaging before they get a closer look at it. If the product stands out, it has a better chance of being sold initially.
SL: Are there elements of textile design that we can learn from and apply to other forms of design in branding?
LN: One of the most important things about textile design is that it can be inspired by anything — from the texture of flowers, blood veins, wave lengths to even intangible things. All disciplines can learn the lesson of optimism from textile design.
SL: How does SA compare to other countries in terms of design? We have many cultures to draw from, but are we doing so?
LN: SA design is on the rise compared to other counties and local designers aren’t really using their cultures as inspiration. My personal opinion is that, if they don’t start, we’ll be going nowhere slowly.
www.maxhosa.co.za • Facebook • Twitter
100% Deep Design
With design still top of mind in SA, 100% Design South Africa, scheduled for August 2016, has announced a new Afro-centric graphic identity and execution for the show, with inspiration drawn from traditional African masks.
The 2016 campaign is the result of a new collaboration between the show and branding agency, Deep Design, which has conceptualised the bold patterns, colours and geometric shapes for the through-the-line campaign.
Says Cathy O’Clery, programmes director for 100% Design South Africa, “The graphic campaign takes its cue from the rich visual traditions in Africa interpreted in a thoroughly contemporary way. The sleek yet playful palette, combined with the use of basic shapes, creates a wonderful toolkit that will play out in a myriad of creative executions, giving the whole show a distinct and directional identity.”
Deep Design’s creative director, Adam Shear, adds, “Part of the attraction to African patternmaking is its naïve sense of alignment and shape, which from a Western design perspective could be seen as imperfect, but it is precisely therein that lies the beauty.”
Inspiration has been drawn from the City of Joburg, whose city streets are a backdrop to a fusion of high-end design and make-do craft, couture fashion and traditional wear, street art, spaza shops and architecture. Shea says the palette came from taking a primary selection of colours (red, blue and yellow) and working with their tonal values to add a bit of ‘African city’ grit — hence the yellow is a little golden and the blue is deep.
“We added a complementary dirty pink that we feel brings a layer of sophistication and modernity to the palette. Classic black holds the set together beautifully.”
The show takes place at Gallagher Convention Centre in Johannesburg, 5–9 August 2016.
www.100percentdesign.co.za • Facebook • Twitter
Making a noise
Insurance company King Price has taken an unconventional creative approach with its latest outdoor advertising in the form of a trumpeting billboard.
Located outside the Financial Services Board offices in Pretoria, the billboard announces the brand’s commitment to customer service with a royal trumpet sequence every hour from 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday.
Xfacta, the agency behind the concept, say it presents a great opportunity to celebrate King Price’s commitment to its customers and at the same time declare the brand’s strong position on decreasing premiums.
www.kingprice.co.za • Facebook • Twitter
Old no. 7 turns 150
Jack Daniel’s Old No. 7 Tennessee Whiskey is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Jack Daniel Distillery, Lynchburg, around the world during 2016 with special promotions and new products, including a commemorative 150th anniversary bottle available on shelf soon.
www.jackdaniels.com • Facebook • Twitter
Shelf Life is MarkLives.com’s weekly column covering all things new. Notify us of yours at shelflife at marklives dot com. Want to sponsor Shelf Life? Contact us here.
Cheryl Hunter (@cherylhunter) has written for the South African media, marketing and advertising industries for more than 15 years. A former editor of M&M in Independent Newspapers and contributor to Bizcommunity, AdFocus, AdReview and the Ad Annual, she has also produced for various television networks and currently consults on communication strategy and media liaison.
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I’ve been enjoying chivas nice and smooth taste