From Baggy to Boutique: The Decade That Transformed Cannabis Branding
Over the past decade, cannabis branding has evolved from a low‑key, baggy aesthetic to a polished, boutique‑style comparable to premium consumer packaged goods. Legalization milestones—medical approval in California (1996), recreational markets in Colorado and Washington (2012), and the 2018 Farm Bill—have given brands legitimacy and access to mainstream channels. Today, cannabis products appear on e‑commerce sites and in big‑box retailers like Target, reflecting a shift in consumer perception. The next ten years will be shaped by potential federal legalization, heightened competition, and the need for differentiated brand experiences.
Don’t Call It Design Oatmeal: Kreatures Of Comfort’s Overnight Oats Goes All-In On Type
Kreatures of Comfort launched Meal One, a high‑protein overnight oat sold in individual pouches, delivering 30 grams of plant‑based protein, gluten‑free, sugar‑free, and fortified with Vitamin D3, Omega‑3s, and probiotics. The brand’s packaging abandons typical oatmeal visuals, opting for a bright, text‑heavy...
Shelf Life 108: Is Bottled Water Performative?
The article argues that bottled water is a quintessential performative purchase, used to signal personal identity and status in public settings. It highlights how brand choices—whether Poland Spring, Loonen, or boutique labels—communicate eco‑consciousness or affluence more than pure hydration needs....
Schweppes Reclaims Its Brand With JKR Instead of Reinventing
Jones Knowles Ritchie has refreshed Schweppes’ iconic cans, replacing the flat design with a warm yellow hue and a diagonal stripe that conveys movement and luxury. The new look features a stylized 1851 Great Exhibition fountain rendered in tonal gold,...
Aqua Libra Finds The Joy In Water
Aqua Libra’s sparkling water has received a bold visual overhaul by Magpie Studio, swapping the industry’s typical icy‑blue minimalism for a vivid palette of electric pink, citrus green, hot orange and chartreuse. The redesign features a wide, compressed sans‑serif wordmark...
Kulturhaus Blends Traditional Bavarian Beer Culture With The Relaxed Nature Of The California Coast
Kulturhaus, a California‑based brewery, is unveiling a new visual identity that blends classic Bavarian beer culture with the relaxed vibe of the West Coast. Designed by the agency Play, the brand adopts mid‑century typography and a limited‑color palette across illustrated...
Thankfully, Purdey’s Energy Drinks Offer Up Some Seriously Non-Aggro Branding
Purdey’s energy drinks have been refreshed by Magpie Studio, unveiling the “Flow Loop” infinity mark that visually ties the entire range together. The redesign replaces the category’s typical neon aggression with flavor‑coded, fruit‑inspired color palettes and calm typography. By turning...
Edenesque Plant Milk Looks Like a Work of Art
Edenesque, a plant‑milk brand, launched a new packaging line created by design agency Perpendicular. The cartons showcase hand‑drawn, mid‑century‑style figures and flavor‑coded color palettes, turning each product into a miniature artwork. This bold visual shift departs from the industry’s typical...
Twisted Hemp Proves That You Can’t Go Wrong With a Little Psychedelic Inspiration
Twisted Hemp has launched a bold packaging redesign created by Dinger Creative, featuring psychedelic‑inspired patterns and vivid color palettes reminiscent of the 1960s‑70s. The new multipack boxes use electric green, hot pink, and vivid red with oversized typography for high‑visibility...
Mitica Signals Attainable Luxury, and In the Cheese Aisle Of All Places
Design Womb’s new Mitica Parmigiano Reggiano packaging swaps traditional wax and plastic for saturated matte paper and gold‑foil stamping, creating a luxe look in the cheese aisle. The wedge‑shaped wraps feature Mediterranean blues and greens, marking the brand’s first use of...
Young Jerks Brings Order to Complete Natural Products Through a Color-Forward Brand System
Young Jerks, a branding agency, created a color‑forward packaging system for Complete Natural Products (CNP), a family‑owned vitamin maker with hundreds of SKUs. The new design uses distinct color palettes to group product categories, improving legibility on crowded retail shelves....
Cattyfeast Turns Cat Food Into Design Purrfection
Italian studio REWOT s.r.l. redesigned FIDOVET’s Cattyfeast cat food with gold‑foil cans and a sophisticated, flavor‑coded palette, turning the product into a premium pantry‑style item. The new wordmark combines a friendly serif with luxury cues, avoiding the typical cartoon aesthetic...
The Return of the Stubby? Garage Beer Bets on Stout Bottles and 24-Can Buckets
Garage Beer, backed by the Kelce brothers, is reviving the classic stubby bottle and launching a 24‑can “hardware bucket” to differentiate itself in a crowded craft‑beer market. The brand positions the stubby as a nostalgic, eye‑catching container while the bucket...
Tessas Eplegård Cider Explores Honest, Farm-Friendly Storytelling
Oslo‑based design studio OlssønBarbieri crafted a new visual identity for Tessas Eplegård, a small‑batch cider from Norway’s Hardanger region. The packaging features a hand‑drawn bug inspired by Scandinavian folk art and a playful serif‑sans mix. The back label breaks convention with...
Pasta Fortuna Tells the Story of a Mother’s Love and a Land of Tradition
Italian design studio nju:design has unveiled a new visual identity for Pasta Fortuna, an artisanal pasta brand rooted in Basilicata’s folk traditions. The brand’s graphics reinterpret centuries‑old good‑luck symbols as flat, gestural silhouettes that echo Matisse cutouts and risograph prints. By...