“Most of the time when we embark on discovery with smaller clients, we find that they haven’t thought through a lot of branding questions yet,” says David Smith, president, Envision Creative Group. “What I found interesting about working with Kelley Quan New York is that Kelley had clearly thought them out already.”
Instead of helping Quan discover the essence of her brand, the firm concentrated on understanding the brand’s multiple facets and transform that identity into a packaging strategy for Quan’s premium brush line. The agency’s Makeover Challenge submission is rooted in the complex yet balanced personality of Quan and her brand and builds on an overarching theme of harmony.
Set to evoke a sense of luxury, yet is grounded—literally and symbolically—the concept pairs a wood base that conveys earthiness and a luxurious textured paperboard cover made by FiberMark, sponsor of this year’s Makeover Challenge. The concept is designed to speak to devotees of high-end cosmetics, but also to those who value the vegan sourcing of the brush materials, with FiberMark LaCrema Ivory paper that’s substantial and pleasant to touch. A reminder, the agency says, that the brushes are a tool to achieve the same velvety, flawless effect on skin.
Envision worked with FiberMark and Wes Ryon of Eyeon finishing to reinforce Kelley Quan’s branding by perfectly matching her signature pink both inside and out on the paperboard top.
A wax seal delivers a sense of exclusivity, without alienating shoppers. An idea inspired by letters, packages or invitations. This feature is a prime example of how well Envision understands Quan the person. “Want to know what’s crazy about this design? I have a stamp like that wax seal,” Quan remarks. “I had that stamp made three years ago, and I use it when sending out something special such as a special-edition product or a package to a vendor.” Envision designed the seal without knowledge of Quan’s personal initial stamp.
A fabric ribbon sets the tone of a true gift and again reinforces and incorporates Quan’s existing branding and references the protective cloths the makeup artist uses on the sets of photo shoots.
“This slider box is beautiful,” Quan remarks. “I love the way it closes. No one will throw this packaging away.” The artist also says the luxurious feel of the box evokes the artisan nature of her products.
“Because my brushes are made by hand, each one is slightly different,” she says. “[In this contest,] I wanted to highlight the fact that the brushes aren’t mass produced. That they are artisan.”
To translate that artisan characteristic into the packaging, Envision hired a local carpenter to fashion both brush bases for the prototypes. The wooden pedestals would then serve as templates for final manufactured stands.
“It’s paramount that we make sure that what we design and what we envision is something that can actually be reproduced,” Smith says. “While the wooden stand is unique, it’s not so intricate that it could not be replicated.” The agency also specified materials and detailed execution down to the L200 foam that would keep the brushes in place in the wooden base.
Envision’s focus on the practicable is a core part of its overall creative strategy. “It doesn’t matter how many ADDYs a design wins if it fails to work in a customer’s business model, if it fails the customer’s business objectives, and it doesn’t positively impact marketing and sales,” says Smith. “What we wanted to show Kelley are the possibilities she hasn’t thought of yet, but are still very much in the realm of the attainable.”