BÂRLOG by URSUS – BRANDNEW

SUMMARY

BÂRLOG by URSUS

Context:

Romanian beer market was characterized by a premiumization trend driven by an improved purchasing power and consumer sentiment. Moreover, it was moving towards a crafty period, as consumers’ tastes were becoming more and more sophisticated and complex.

Over 20 independent craft-breweries (Zaganu, Ground Zero) were active in the Romanian beer market and further growing. In addition, scale beer players were entering craft segment via craft-quality propositions (Timisoreana Nepa, Ursus Retro, Silva).

Considering this trend, a new craft brewery was going to be built in Cluj, on the same site as the old Ursus brewery, where will be brewed all styles of beers, having innovation at its core, under a new brand name: Bârlog.

CLIENT:

Ursus Breweries

BRAND:

Bârlog

INDUSTRY:

Beer

TASK:

Packaging Design

The Brief / The Challenge

The brand will acknowledge the value of tradition in beer, however its main purpose was to bring evolution in the category, starting from new tastes and profile and moving to communication and attitude.

Our task was to develop the brand identity for Bârlog as being progressive with an urban touch, having a cool, slightly rebel attitude, integrating craftsmanship and authenticity and create the packaging for craft beers using 4 beers using the story and personality of 4 Romanian rulers, iconic figures in Romanian history.

The Solution / Design Concept

Special attention was given to the following elements:

- delivering visual craft promises (raw, natural, rough, imperfect, vintage, honest, or even experimental twist)

- brand narratives — as honest as they could be

In terms of design, the craft style has an extremely high elasticity. There is no structure and hierarchy in the packaging. Standard, classic rules are no longer applied, so labels can be minimalist, movie mini-posters or even mini-brochures with elaborate stories.

For BRAND IDENTITY: we’ve aimed a direct link to the bear, capturing the brave and cool, slightly rebellious personality of the brand.

For PACKAGING DESIGN, the solution was to look for narrative executions to better tell the story of the brand. We overlapped the historical element with the liquid, building a single story. We used the type of constructions and executions specific to history books or historical stories, so we don’t trivialize the symbols.

The result was a series of artworks that have soul and speak passion.