Packaging and Merchandising Design: Project 2

23.05.2024 - 06.06.2024 (Week 4 - Week 10)

Sorcha Griselda / 0353056 

Packaging and Merchandising Design / Bachelor of Design in Creative Media / Taylor's University

Project 2 | Innovative Packaging (Collaboration project with School of Biosciences)

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INSTRUCTION

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Project 2

Meeting with BioScience Students

During Week 04, the BioScience students provided us with a presentation for their food products. 

FPD Group 6 :Pepperoni Vegibites by Siew Whitney

Then during Week 07, they private message me in WhatsApp about their food product details.

Fig 1.1 Product Details Requirement

After receiving that message, I started with my research and initial sketches for the design of the packaging. I also created a Pinterest board which compile all of the ideas that inspire me for designing this project.

Fig 1.2 Pinterest Board

Fig 1.2 Ideas Sketches #1

Fig 1.3 Ideas Sketches #2

After I showed my initial sketches, it turns out that I was designing the wrong packaging type. So I scratched out my initial idea and created a new one which can be seen below:

Fig 1.4 New Design Sketches

They also provided me a document with the information regarding the food packaging.

Fig 1.5 "Pepperoni Vegibites" Packaging Design Information

Week 09 Progress

In Week 09, I worked on developing my ideas using Illustrator. I incorporated some color suggestions and referred to Mr. Shamsul's notes to ensure they related to the product. Additionally, I explored Adobe Fonts to find suitable typefaces for the brand and provided 10 different options for the Bioscience students to choose from for their food packaging.

Fig 1.6 Idea Progression

They decided to choose 'Sketchnote Square' for their brand typeface and use 'CarlMarx' typeface for the packaging information text. After getting the typeface confirmation, I started to do some illustration for the packaging. I came up with several pizza illustrations and I also tried to make the front panel design of the packaging.

Fig 1.7 First Digital Draft

Week 10 Progress

This week, I really tried my best to finalize on the packaging design. After getting feedback from Mr. Shamsul, I decided to incorporate real photo for the front panel design as it looks more cleaner and professional. I got the pizza bites photo from Pexels.

Fig 1.8 Chosen Pizza Picture

Then, I designed and finalized the front and back panel of the packaging. I also transfer all of the information of the food product, such as the nutrition facts, ingredients, cooking instructions, storage instructions, and manufacturer. I came up with several designs for the nutrition facts label. However, Mr. Shamsul suggested me to follow the official format.

Fig 1.9 Initial Nutrition Facts Label Designs

Fig 1.10 Second Digital Draft

After finalizing the design, I realized I had made a mistake with the front panel ingredients. The Bioscience students informed me that their product is made from mushrooms, beans, and tofu, not soybeans. So, I updated the ingredient illustration accordingly. They also mentioned that I needed to include a Malaysian translation on the packaging, resulting in a bilingual design with both English and Malaysian. Thus, I made adjustment on the designs accordingly.

Fig 1.11 Final Packaging Design

Week 11 Progress

During this week, I finalize on creating the dieline, mockups, and also my presentation slides of the final packaging design. Not gonna lie this was the most exhausting week as there are quite a lot of things need to be done before the presentation deadline.

Fig 1.12 Dieline Progression

I made up two mockups for this packaging design.

Fig 1.13 Mockup Progression #1

Fig 1.14 Mockup Progression #2

After finishing creating all of the mockups and dieline, I continued with finalizing my presentation slides that I created on Canva. The slides, mockups and dieline can be seen on the final submission.

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FINAL SUBMISSION

Fig 2.1 Presentation Slides | PDF

Fig 2.2 Dieline | JPEG

Fig 2.3 Packaging Mockup #1

Fig 2.4 Packaging Mockup #2

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FEEDBACK

Week 8

• Need more visual references
• Include the USP (like the visual of the ingredients), and additional informations of the products (weight, icons)
• Update on the box design sketches and come up with the detailed sketches (front panel and back panel)

Week 9

• Change the soybean illustration and create a grid system for the layout of the packaging
• It's better for you to combine a photo and illustration for the packaging design

Week 10

• Change the barcode color and the nutrition label
• Come up with English and Malaysian version for the packaging design

Week 11

• Nothing much to comment on, overall great design!

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REFLECTION

Experience

Overall, this project has been a valuable learning experience. It taught me how to design packaging with specific goals and tasks in mind. Initially, I struggled with creating a design that represented the brand while avoiding an old-school look, aiming instead for a modern, fresh appearance. Honestly, this project is pretty draining as I need to keep on revising on the details of the design until it suites the food brand. 

Observation

Observation was crucial for this task. At first, I found it challenging to figure out where to start. However, Ms. Shamsul's advice to conduct online research on platforms like Behance and Pinterest was incredibly helpful. This research sparked my creativity and provided inspiration for my packaging design. Thus, observation continued to play a significant role in shaping the final design packaging, which turned out great.

Findings

I have learned a lot from this task. Working with Kawan Food and another program provided valuable insight into the real world such as dealing with clients, even if the experience was relatively smooth compared to the industry norm. Additionally, I gained a deeper understanding of packaging in Malaysia, something I had not paid much attention to before.