Without has created a cross-cultural brand & packaging identity for the new Asian food line Kelly Loves. Kelly Loves has been created by well-known Korean food entrepreneur Kelly Choi, founder of Kelly Deli and Sushi Daily, in a bid to bring wholesome Asian food to Western supermarket shelves and tap into the booming 'grab-and-go' sector.
Currently, consumers interested in pan-Asian food are often faced with specialist Eastern brands that, while authentic, can be unfamiliar and intimidating, or dumbed-down Western versions that rely on clichés and lack credibility. Without has created a category-changing language that exists between the two worlds, allowing Western shoppers easy access to real Eastern flavors.
To achieve this, the Without design team looked to the traditional line drawings and cartoon styles of the East to create a fresh, authentic design language and tone of voice, with Kelly at the heart of the brand story.
"Kelly Choi has such integrity and passion, and we wanted to get that across," explained Roly Grant, Creative Director, Without. "We decided upon the 'Kelly Loves' name as it is completely adaptable and celebrates the fact that founder Kelly is a chef, mum and provider who wants to look after her customers.
"During the collaboration process, Kelly frequently mentioned that she would only sell what she was happy to feed her young daughter, so this became a central tenet of our approach. We developed Asian-inspired line drawings of a mother and daughter interacting to bring the brand to life and provide cohesion across the range. The two characters allow us to demonstrate different product attributes - light, healthy, balanced, for example - in an engaging, friendly way."
So a cute drawing of a little girl being lifted into the air on a seaweed-snack 'balloon' points to the lightness of the product, for example. Likewise, when we see her walking along a chopstick 'beam', we understand that the product is perfectly balanced. These images, when combined with on-pack drawings of the products or windows that reveal them, leave consumers in no doubt as to what they are buying.
Images: Courtesy of Without