Package Design - April 2014 - 40

FIELD NOTES

A Debut with Swag
Does the look say confident bravado or is it more hempen homespun?

THE PRODUCT
Is there any corner of society that hasn't
heard or seen Psy's "Gangnam Style"?
Psy and his artist's record label, YG
Entertainment, clearly have cracked the
code for creating a hit in Korea and marketing their brands across the globe.
But will YG Entertainment's next
international hit come from its talent
agency business or its design-andbranding firm, Art & Design International.
ADI recently designed men's grooming brand, Swagger, which the firm's

spokesperson Meda Ntumba describes
as high-quality grooming products for
"the intelligent, chic, urban man." Indeed,
sleek, modern bottle shapes and typography lend an urban feel to the line. An
overwrap design borrowed from the spirits industry, the agency says, is a pre-

mium cue and conveys environmental
responsibility in the Korean market.
Copy written in English versus
Korean Hangul suggests an ambition to
take the Swagger brand international.
Does the overall design translate in the
Occident, though? Our readers weigh in.

THE VERDICT
Simple geometry, a limited palette and
the overall packaging material selections, make this an appropriate look for
the Korean market. I would recommend
simplifying the logotype to reinforce the
handsomeness of the packaging further.
However, the secondary packaging
choice of the Kraft bag seems out of
character for the Swagger brand positioning and does not deliver a premium
message.
Lisa Baer, senior director of market innovation,
Packaging Technology Integrated Solutions, a
division of HAVI Global Solutions

The Swagger packaging is bold, clean
and simple-qualities that I appreciate
and try to incorporate into our work. The
black circle on the bottle acts as a bull'seye and grabs your attention.
Yes, the whiskey bottle shape has
been done in this category. But it conveys the attitude that I think they are
after. Where I see a disconnect is with
the paper bag. It doesn't say premium to
me. It also hides the beauty of the bot40

April 2014

tle, which is the most attractive aspect
of the product.

lower-case typography is clean and
nicely supports the essence of the brand
communicated by the aforementioned
structures.
Where this branding may face challenges in the American market is in the
name Swagger, which is already used as
a sub-brand for Old Spice products, and
in the paper wrap. For some, the paper
wrap may be received as kitschy and
urban cool. For others, it may create an
association to homelessness, individuals
that drink cheap whiskey out of bottles
wrapped in paper bags, and somebody
down on their luck.

Brian Schultz, principal and creative director of
Brian Schultz Design, LLC

R.J. Murray, principal at Murray Brand
Communications Inc.

The angular style of the packaging structures selected for the cologne bottle, box
and cream along with the simple label
and abundant application of black are
classic and, to a certain extent, expected
visual treatments used in the design of
men's products. What's more, the whiteon-black brandmark and use of san serif,

Want to have your package design
highlighted in this column or comment on
future, spotlighted package designs?
Contact Linda Casey at linda.casey@
stmediagroup.com and type "Field Notes"
in the email subject line.
Package Design - April 2014

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Package Design - April 2014
