The New Eco-Campaigners

Yes To Carrots brand achieved a great crossover with the food category with old favorites packaged up in a new way.

Natural and mainstream beauty sectors have merged in a way that the original eco brands probably never anticipated. Now, opportunities abound for taking the packaging to a whole new level.

Written by Jonathan Ford, Pearlfisher

Today’s iconic naturals brands, including Dr. Hauschka, Origins and Aveda, were undoubtedly the eco warriors of their day, changing the face of the natural beauty market forever. In the past 10-15 years, the number of natural and eco launches has been phenomenal. But, alongside this, an eco and sustainable consideration has become integral to the overall beauty offer and, as a result, the natural and mainstream beauty sectors have solidly merged in a way that was probably never anticipated.

However, while many of the new naturals have been gorgeous looking, many have seemed—dare I say it—a bit formulaic in following their choice of tested design routes as a chatty, quirky, fun or pared down natural brand blending into one another and into the mainstream. Aside from a couple of notable brand beacons—such as Nude Skincare or Bare Escentuals cosmetics—it has been a true case of quantity rather than quality with the plethora of launches not changing the somewhat increasingly static nature of this market when it comes to true product and packaging innovation. But we are now starting to see a second generation of innovative eco campaigner brands, which have the power to change not just the future direction of this category, but to also direct and impact the mainstream and cross-categories.

Radical Recipes

We have undoubtedly seen a greater crossover with the food category with old favorites packaged up in a new way—as with the fabulous Yes To Carrots brand. Or, with the continuing trend for Superfoods—and the Good Things brand packed with sweet treats such as goji berries and papaya. Fresh and direct, but maybe still safely following the pack when it comes to tried and tested ingredients and packaging solutions?

But we are finally seeing a change in terms of new—and more unexpected—food- and nature-sourced ingredients being used. There is innovation right across the board from Swiss Apple and Superdrug’s Optimum Serum, to red wine with Bite’s new Define and Refine Lip Set, which boasts five glasses worth of red wine in each richly pigmented shade. And, what about marijuana? Apothecanna’s new “medical marijuana skin care” is boldly going where beauty has never gone before. Yes, they do need to be careful to excite rather than offend with such a controversial ingredient, but the health benefits of marijuana have become more openly documented. While I can understand the clinical looking packaging for an apothecary brand, I feel that the key ingredient could have a better focus and be better reflected through the packaging design.

This know-how is perfectly and beautifully executed by new brand Further. Further’s products are derived from vegetable oil salvaged from some of LA’s finest restaurants. The re-purposed grease is purified and made into soap, lotion and candles.

The structures of the cans play to the provenance and heritage of its food and grass-roots origin and the structure alone is enough to convey the unique nature of the product. This is also tapping into the very on-trend expressions of industrial beauty and eco luxury. Married with the tactile nature of the wraps and the beautiful calligraphy of the logo to promote the quality of the product, this brand balances contradictions and trends, and ticks sustainability and forward-looking design boxes on so many levels.

Shaping Up

It is pleasing to see that while sustainable materials and processes are now integral from the start of the design process for very many brands, this sector is once again also paying more attention to structure.

21 Drops is a modern line of therapeutic grade essential oils providing a much-needed blast of color, energy and dynamism to the rather crunchy aromatherapy market.

You can’t fault the brand’s approach when it comes to the use of responsible resources but, personally, I think most of note is the structure: 21 folding cartons with individual personalities, but that hang together as a cohesive collection with font-driven numerical graphics, product-specific color palettes and custom-embossed patterns.

Although still at concept stage as a graduate project, THIS toothbrush just has to have a mention. The Miswak is a tooth-cleaning twig used mainly in the Middle East, Pakistan and India. Traditionally, the top is bitten off with every use to reveal soft bristles similar to that of a toothbrush.

“THIS aims to repackage and promote the Miswak as an organic, biodegradable, portable, more beneficial substitute for toothpaste and a toothbrush. The biggest challenge was figuring out how to package and market the twig to a contemporary American audience, which would not be entertained with the idea of biting off the top of the stick in order to use it. The solution for this is a cigar-cutter-like cap that peels off the outer layer to reveal the natural bristles, and slices them off after use. It also protects the stick from germs and microbes.” (Source: www.thedieline.com)

Young Buds

Good to see that the eco sector is also now starting to nurture and grow with the next generation, with new brands such as Walmart’s GeoGirl. GeoGirl is aimed at ages 8-12 years, but wholeheartedly defines itself by its brand mission rather than its target demographic.

The brand is positioned as environmentally responsible with all aspects of product and design based on natural and sustainable technologies. Moreover, the website provides a detailed and open explanation of the marketing strategy:

“We believe that now is a great time to set good beauty habits, to teach young girls the do’s and don’ts so they learn how to do it right—right from the start.

“But we also remind her that true beauty comes from within. So GeoGirl helps give her an inner glow by empowering her to give back and make a difference in the world around her.” (Source: www.geogirl.com)

The design is simple and beautiful with cute floral designs and recycled cardboard outers for all products. And the clever naming strategy engages abbreviations that are widely used by today’s youth—for example, with a cleanser called T2G (Time to Go).

Cause & Cosmetics

One Love Organics is currently the only waterless skin care line in the U.S. There is no secondary packaging and the handcrafted nature of the products is reflected in the whimsical product names and hand-drawn patterns in rosy colors to reflect the brand’s belief “that happiness is the foundation of true beauty.”

Stop The Water While Using Me is the first beauty brand to use the naming as a campaign-able slogan, with the purpose of making the consumer think, act and feel involved in a very different way.

This emotive promotion of mission and philosophy, while not new, is still indicative of another sea change being led by this sector for a new campaign-able beauty.

Stop The Water While Using Me is the first beauty brand to use the naming as a campaign-able slogan and to use back-of-pack copy as its brand manifesto, calling for collaboration from its consumer rather than as just a product descriptor.

Stop The Water While Using Me fearlessly embraces a new eco superiority that is not about glamour but goals—and with the purpose of making the consumer think, act and feel involved in a very different way. It is just as covetable and emotive as One Love Organics, but this is conveyed through a bold and striking simplicity that—despite no frills—can’t help but provoke a reaction and response.

Seeds of Change

Our world is an immediate one and we desire the best—and most impactful—solution right away. And brands such as Stop The Water bring this immediacy to life for us. But, as designers, we also need to look at the whole picture and must always consider the implications of our designs on the landscape of tomorrow.

It is about the opportunity for beauty to have a more meaningful connection—on many levels—and about the widespread change of designing for social impact which is affecting the whole brand and design community and so must surely also be felt by the beauty sector, which now, more than ever, needs to show a good, well-designed and innovative face as well as a good soul.

All design challenges are about resolving problems, and in this respect, that’s all we have to do—think differently about what beauty today means, by looking at a host of new creative opportunities which can appeal to the hearts, minds and desires of the beauty/eco consumer while addressing our changing society.

About the Author
Jonathan Ford is a designer and creative partner of Pearlfisher – www.pearlfisher.com