I have this thing for capsule treatments. It goes way back. The label is the hero of the package. But why overlook the supporting actor? Together, they raise the entire presentation. Given what can be achieved on capsules today, capsules can play a significant role in capturing attention on the shelf. Given a wine package’s small amount of visual real estate, no square inch should be overlooked....
On August 19th Wines & Vines magazine hosted their second annual Packaging Conference at COPIA in Napa. I was flattered to have been invited to participate....
2008 wasn’t a good year. The economy was in a nose dive and customers were not buying wine. With inventories stuck in warehouses, the last thing vintners considered was new package design. My response was irreverent and somewhat provocative. ...
I was about to pull the trigger on the above leaning tower of Pisa idea for a self-promotion piece. Then I discovered someone else got there first....
I am flattered to be considered one of Jane Firstenfeld's “go-to” sources for what’s going on in wine package design....
I would like to able to tell you that every one of my designs was approved at the first presentation. That’s not the way it works. In most instances, it is a process of give and take....
Every once in a while I’ll get lucky and find a client who values adding depth and character to their letterhead suite. Let me quickly qualify “letterhead.” That particular element in a businesses’ identity package is now a dinosaur. When was the last you received a “business letter?”...
Wineries want to create points of difference with their core and reserve wines. At the same time, there needs to be a measure of continuity between the two. Reserve wines, obviously, need to look more up-scale to reflect their elevated price points. Marketing people refer to this as “positioning.”...
The October 2015 issue of Wines & Vines did just that. My thanks to Senior Staff Writer Jane Firstenfeld for generously including my work in her extensive cover article, “Bottle-Label Combos That Hook Buyers.” Jane walks readers through all the latest package design options and illustrates many projects, including my own. ...
Leslie Bowlus, the owner of Sense of Place, did send me an old fashioned paper, hand written, thank you note. It was tucked inside a case of wine, which made it even sweeter. ...