London-based branding agency Path has created new identities for two major cooking sauce brands in the UK: Ragu and Chicken Tonight.
The relaunches follow the recent purchase of the two brands from Unilever by privately held foods group Symington’s, based in Leeds, UK.
Ragu is being repositioned, with new recipes, to highlight its Italian-American heritage, dating back to 1937 in Rochester, New York. The new jar has heavy embossing and a robust feel like a “mason jar”, and the branding has been simplified and redrawn to deliver a “bold and authentic look” with a rustic label texture.
A particular challenge for Path was to achieve this on modern high-speed packing technology.
Tom Herman at Path says: “We are conveying that Ragu is traditional and relevant – a great modern classic, which offers good honest value.
“Previously the packaging design lacked depth and didn’t convey the quality of the brand. We have set about changing all that, both with the jars and the graphic treatment. The brand is now far more engaging and remarkable.”
For Chicken Tonight, Path says it has “tapped into the convenience brand territory”, targeting “mainstream households, often with kids, who are time poor and can be less confident cooks”. The concept is “all about making the family happy”.
The redrawn brand mark is carried in a ‘post-it’ note style frame, which might be seen on a shopping list or on the fridge door as a reminder for dinner. The rest of the pack delivers layers of information, inspiration and advice while ‘romancing’ the ingredients and the recipes – all set on a background of full colour bold ingredients to “deliver impact and standout over competition”.
“We are aiming to re-engage with busy Mums shopping for the family,” says Herman. “We’ve abandoned the plated meal cliché on pack preferring to highlight the vibrant ingredients, the brand and the benefits messages. This allows the products to be remarkable rather than just like the rest.”
Acquired by Symingtons in 2011, the Chicken Tonight brand originally launched in 1991 in the US, before entering UK in 1993 and quickly becoming a well-loved brand in assembly cooking.
Path has been working in partnership with Symington’s for nearly three years, in which time the Leeds based company has grown from a £50m value towards £200m.
Ragu sauce range, relaunch design by Path Chicken Tonight sauce range, relaunch design by Path
