High End Packaging Design for an Artisanal Soy Sauce Brand
Kioke Reserve is a premium artisanal brand producing traditional barrel-aged soy sauces.
The name “Kioke Reserve” is directly inspired by “kioke,” Japanese wooden barrels used for fermenting ingredients like soy sauce, sake, and miso. These cedar barrels create a unique, distinct flavor profile that distinguishes products made this way.
The practice of barrel aging in Japan is deeply intertwined with the country’s rich culinary heritage. While modern, mass-produced soy sauces have abandoned barrel aging for simpler methods, Kioke Reserve is committed to the time-honored artisanal process.
Kioke Reserve approached us seeking a high end logo and packaging design that reflected the quality, flavor, and craftsmanship of their soy sauces and conveyed the cultural roots of the brand.
- Brand messaging
- Brand identity
- Mood boards
- Package design
- Illustrations
- Print ready artwork mechanicals
Mood Boards Capture
the Brand Essence
We began by creating visual mood boards that captured the vision we saw for the branding. These mood boards laid out three distinct branding directions: a modern approach, a traditional concept, and an elegant design approach, each with inspiration photos highlighting typography, color palette, and other visual elements.
The mood boards also featured competitor research and carved out how we planned to set Kioke Reserve apart through unique, high end packaging design.
Competitors in the soy sauce space tend to stick to a similar color palette and design style, with earthy color palettes and traditional Chinese or Japanese characters. Many of them have a lower-end feel and blend in with other options.
The founders of the brand wanted something outside of the box, that symbolized Japanese culture but also resonated with a broader audience, rather than sticking to just traditional characters that many US consumers might not be familiar with.
We wanted to create a modern twist on Japanese symbology with a relatable character that many could recognize as a cultural symbol, along with an elevated design to set the brand apart as a premium alternative to cheaper soy sauce options.
In the mood board phase, we explored different Japanese symbols, including architecture, cherry blossoms, and koi fish. Through collaboration with the founders of the brand, we settled on koi fish as the primary symbol for the branding.
The mood boards also provided a detailed look at what we planned to execute in our designs. We visualized geometric elements inspired by nature, nodding to Japanese culture but with a modern feel. We also wanted a minimal feel with negative space and clean lines to create a sophisticated look for the logo and packaging.
We ultimately ended up taking elements from both the modern direction and the traditional one, creating a unique and premium branding essence for Kioke Reserve with a vivid, stimulating color palette along with geometric patterns inspired by Japanese culture.
A Sophisticated
Logo Design
For the logo, we created a clean, cultural design. The custom elements in the font, such as the curvature in the K and the extended lines in the first and last letters of “Kioke” are reminiscent of traditional Japanese characters.
The customized “O” contains geometric patterns inspired by Japanese symbology—inspired by koi fish scales. The spacing within the logo creates a balance of typography and negative space that draws in the eye.
A Symbolic Brand
Color Palette
For the primary brand colors, we wanted a high-end feel with cultural emphasis. During the mood board and research phase, we identified red, black, and white as important colors related to Japanese culture.
Cream and black also evoke a sophisticated, powerful feel while red stimulates the appetite and symbolizes bold flavors.
An Uplifting Koi Illustration
The koi fish is an important Japanese symbol dating back centuries, representing resilience and courage, particularly when “swimming upstream” (choosing a more difficult path despite obstacles). This tied into the brand’s artisanal process—they were choosing a more difficult, but more rewarding method to create their soy sauce through traditional barrel aging.
We created an eye-catching custom koi illustration with vibrant colors and a sense of movement in the curvature of the tail.
The High End
Packaging Design
Our design was clean and minimalistic, featuring important symbols and highlighting the information that set the product apart, such as “Brewed in Japan” and “Cedar Barrel Aged.” Many competitors used white labels to contrast against the dark color of the soy sauce; we elevated this to a cream label, popping while maintaining a high-end feel.
Pops of unexpected colors, such as purple and bright orange, draw the eye and create a distinguished visual to stand out on shelves. The braided bands across the top and bottom of the label are inspired by the traditional ropes, often made of bamboo or Kioke, that bind the wooden barrels during the soy sauce fermentation process. This adds a unique, modern element with cultural symbology.
The Results
The high end packaging design and culturally-inspired logo established a premium brand image for Kioke Reserve as they launched their product, setting them apart and symbolizing the unique, traditional commitment of the brand.
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