Brand Identity
Packaging Design
Campaign Development
Photography
Public Relations
After extensive market research, Pabst found that women ages 21-35 were buying 60% of the flavored malt beverage business, which required the brand make a major pivot in every aspect. The Hype team kicked off with a deep dive into the entire NYF brand, taking note of inconsistencies in visual style, and voice and tone, current communication methods, and the differences between the original and newly established target demographic.
We noted that the original NYF brand skewed masculine and more mature, and also suffered from a lack of brand delineation – juggling names like Small Town Brewery, Not Your Father’s, and Not Your Mom’s – all of which are connected to the diverse Pabst portfolio.
Once we had the written direction of the brand solidified, we started narrowing down visual direction, working with different color combinations and varying levels of simplicity. A mood board was delivered to Pabst, highlighting their top priorities and main desires for the brand. This included a fresh, vibrant color palette, consistent structure across their flavor portfolio, and design geared towards a more feminine audience.
Following the mood board, we hit the ground running with concept ideation. We worked first to revitalize the logotype and pair it perfectly with an ownable brand mark. This initially meant updating the brand’s “gentleman” character, but after further discussion with the client, we decided to go in an entirely new direction, focusing solely on the logotype as the brand’s primary lock-up. This would resonate more with the new demographic, and draw a line in the sand between the past and the present NYF.
Once the brand was finalized, the product packaging needed to be revamped. While Pabst had future plans to build out an extensive array of flavors, we were tasked with packaging the original flavor, Root Beer, along with the newest addition, Lemonade.
We simplified the label design by infusing it with significant white space, allowing the logotype to take center stage and be the dominant brand element across all SKUs. We split the label into thirds, locking down the primary flavor color to the bottom third of the label and overlaying a secondary color block to house the flavor name. A texture was also applied to create more dimension throughout the packaging, and is also a consistent piece of the overall brand – found on the bottle label itself, on the website, and on social media graphics. Custom icons were also designed to further delineate each flavor in the NYF suite, plus creative copy across the labels to demonstrate the personality of the brand.
