Pint-sized York agency wins prestigious design award for beer branding
York design and branding agency United by Design is raising a pint glass to success, after its packaging designs for a brewery's beer range were awarded Silver at the Design Business Association (DBA)'s highly-esteemed Design Effectiveness Awards.
United by Design's striking branded packaging designs for North Yorkshire-based Treboom Brewery picked up the silver award in the Branded Drink category at the awards ceremony on Thursday, February 11th. The designs for the brewery's new range of bottled beers and pump clips for cask and keg have been hugely successful, with the recognisable packaging lauded within the beer and brewing industries and the brewery's bottle sales beating monthly targets by an astonishing 122%.
UBD's Managing Director, Owen Turner, was overjoyed at his company's win:
"We're so pleased and proud to have won such a prestigious award - to have our work recognised and commended by such an esteemed panel of judges is really a turning point for us. The branded packaging we created for Treboom's beer really sum up what United by Design is all about: starting with an idea, then going beyond the brief to take the design from engaging to truly experiential.
"The notion that design is a worthwhile investment for a growing business can be hard to quantify, but with our packaging design for Treboom I think we really ticked that box - with bottle sales increasing by 92.7% in their first year, we certainly can't dispute the impact of our work!"
Established by the Design Business Association and now in its 27th year, the Design Effectiveness Awards ceremony brought together more than five hundred design and business leaders at London's prestigious Tobacco Dock. The much-coveted awards celebrate the design industry's top talent, rewarding design work that has had a tangible effect on the business success of the client. According to the category criteria outlined by the judging panel, United by Design's silver award demonstrates "excellent examples of design effectiveness which have led to significant business results for the client."
A shortlist of 61 winners was announced after two rigorous rounds of judging by senior business figures from brands such as British Airways, Channel Four and Coca Cola. As one of the smallest agencies to be shortlisted, United by Design faced stiff competition from larger and higher-profile rivals.
Established in 2011, Treboom Brewery approached United by Design to create a branding strategy and label designs for its new range of bottled beers. The brewery was keen to develop its customer base with its expansion into the bottled beer market, as well as repositioning its bottled beers as premium products.
With their strong black lines, defined illustration style and emphasis on pattern, United by Design's packaging designs aimed to promote the character and personality of the individual Treboom ales. As well as highlighting the brewery's focus on tasting notes and food pairing recommendations, the branding strategy moved away from traditional label styles by featuring the brewery's logo on the bottles' necks, separately from the rest of the label design.
Feedback from the brewery was glowing, and United by Design's carefully-considered designs have led Treboom's owners to continue to develop the great relationship with the agency, inviting them to extend their expertise to transforming more of the brewery's branding. Jane Blackman, joint founder of Treboom, said: 'The bottle label designs have been so successful in grabbing attention that we have decided to extend our core, seasonal and special ale ranges across our pump clips to reflect the bottle label designs. We feel the designs portray the right image for the brewery, making us proud not only of our beers but also the image they project.'
The branding venture has also become something of a flagship project for United by Design: in addition to their success at the Design Business Association (DBA) Design Effectiveness Awards, the Treboom labels were awarded Bronze in the Packaging Design category at the International A' Design Award & Competition, as well as receiving a 'highly commended' nomination in the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA)'s 2014 industry awards.
