JKR

Green & Blacks

Green and Black’s has crossed the divide from niche player to the mainstream shopping basket (as well as Kraft ownership) with apparent ease, keeping its values in place, and bringing old fans with it – some achievement.

From a design perspective, what stands out through these transformative years is how nimbly the design has evolved. A brand built on quality and ethics, it has not capriciously chased fashion. Successive repackaging has not attempted to fundamentally change the design DNA of the brand, but enabled it to move with the times and its own change in fortunes. This is a brand and design that does not shift positioning as trend dictates; it is built on conviction and has longevity in mind.

Whilst there is nothing particularly unique about the shape, colours or typeface used, in concert they deliver something highly recognisable and inherently grown up. Amidst the loud characterful confectionary of the supermarket aisle, Green and Black’s is more measured and softly spoken. It proves that standout is not simply a case of shouting. This gentler tone is appropriate for a brand with substance as well as style. The bolder new livery, an inversion of the more muted colours of the past, expresses the move from niche to mainstream. This juggles the premium simplicity of the original packaging with a more easily navigable and appetising design, as befits the FMCG context. Success has not turned Green and Black’s head – perhaps remaining true to oneself is the root of good fortune.

By Georgina Leigh-Pemberton, Account Director, jkr. For the full article, see this week's copy of Marketing magazine.