The first time I saw Sauce Shop – a founder-led brand of quality condiments, born on a Nottingham market stall – I was instantly drawn in by its anti-brand identity and the handmade feel of its pack design. Its Dymo-Machine logo and type gave the identity an obvious challenger brand edge, but there was also something deeply witty and nostalgic about it that reassured me that this was a brand that cared about food, and design, and craft.

I was delighted when, a couple of years later, Sauce Shop founders Pam and James got in touch to talk about evolving the branding and packaging design. The business has expanded fast, with a growing presence in major UK retailers, and was now finding itself competing against mass and global brands that people often buy on auto-pilot. It was clear that the brand needed better shelf standout, greater taste cues and better navigation across products, but Pam and James were understandably protective of the design and nervous of losing its independent spirit and rebellious edge. Luckily, we felt the same, and over the course of the next few months we collaborated on a design evolution that has had a dramatic impact without resorting to drastic change.

The new design features a subtly tweaked logo, stronger colour-coding, clearer descriptors and tasting notes, all delivering the elevation the brand needed on shelf. A new illustration style on New Product Development products has enabled the brand to stretch into new categories, while hand-drawn icons better communicate product benefits and showcase the brand’s tone of voice. Real customer feedback features across Shelf Ready Packaging, highlighting the brand’s community feel and the love and loyalty it receives from its consumers.

For me, the Sauce Shop refresh delivers on the depth that existed in the brand but didn’t show up in the design. It makes more, not less, of the brand’s personality and commitment to craft, and it brings in more solid foundations that will allow Sauce Shop to continue its growth trajectory with clarity and confidence. The moral of the story is that growing up doesn’t have to mean settling down – brands can continue to challenge conformity and express themselves in unexpected ways while still meeting the necessary objectives of taste, clarity and standout.

Sauce Shop founder Pam Digva agrees: “While we were passionate about our original branding, we knew we needed it to better reflect the high quality of our product. But we were never going to fully conform to the codes of the category – that’s simply not our style. With the new design we were able to find a way to be true to ourselves without overly challenging consumers. We’ve kept our playful spirit in a way that has enabled us to welcome many more people to the party.”

As originally published in Creativ Verpacken.