Mike & Mike's co-founders and long time friends, Nathaniel Kendrick and Mike Mitchell, connected with us to help elevate their brand and scale to appeal to a larger market. They have created an insanely unique recipe that not only tastes good, but is also safe for those with dietary restrictions. How they were able to make a cupcake with no dairy, no nuts, no eggs, and still make it taste like the real thing is some super freaky science magic that we still can't wrap our mind around. Despite having such an incredible product — they had trouble articulating their story, finding their core audience, and lacked design consistency and packaging that could get them to be taken seriously.
We helped them reposition their brand, discovered a more profitable market that aligned with their true self, and reshaped how to tell their story in an authentic way. We also gave their visual identity, packaging, and overall design a facelift; to feel more in-line with the quality they stand for, without losing the playfulness of who they are. This helped them break through their cap of up to 50 various health food locations, to launching in all 1,393 current Publix stores.
Before we begin designing, we make sure everyone is on the same page of what goals we need to reach. For the M&M team, they had several: clarify their story, be more aligned with their audience, scale into a larger market, and maintain a consistent experience. In our discovery session, we uncovered a few things that we felt needed to be explored further to ensure we could create the most accurate impact. Words like "plant-based/vegan" had more negative connotations in the area's they were trying to launch into, so we shifted to calling the product "allergy friendly" instead. That phrasing also helped them position themselves for a wider market of people looking for a dessert without eggs, dairy, or nuts vs. the hardcore vegan crowd. We also helped them hone-in on their core beliefs and goals as a brand — creating a solid foundation for everyone to become more unified as a company; thus creating consistency over time.
When it comes to landing a contract with a major grocery chain like Publix, you not only have to have a great product — you also have to look the part. The Mike & Mike's team needed a system that could scale and be easy to identify. Understanding that their new designs needed to woo investors, charm the avocado-toast loving moms, & still get a thumbs up from the kiddos; we opted for this playful custom wordmark. It adds a perfect sprinkle of that playful personality, while still feeling like a premium legacy brand. We also wanted to make a unique tie-in to Mike & Mike's roots. By referencing the hat in Mike's original character and refining it to work on its own, we were able to create something iconic that has a story. We then went a step further in re-working the original logo to be repurposed as a "school friendly badge" — to help shoppers quickly indicate that this is an allergy friendly product that's safe for kids.
We didn't have control over the packaging itself...bummer :( We did however have full freedom on the label design...yay! :) In our research, we noticed the competition was a bit color-shy, revealing an opportunity to stand out. Mike & Mike's previous labels were cluttered and difficult to read. When it boiled down to it; the key things their audience wanted to know quickly was: Who's behind this? What's the flavor? And can little Timmy with nut allergies eat it? Our approach was to do just that. Simple, to the point, and easy to digest...just like their product.
When it comes to landing a contract with a major grocery chain like Publix, you not only have to have a great product — you also have to look the part. The Mike & Mike's team needed a system that could scale and be easy to identify. Understanding that their new designs needed to woo investors, charm the avocado-toast loving moms, & still get a thumbs up from the kiddos; we opted for this playful custom wordmark. It adds a perfect sprinkle of that playful personality, while still feeling like a premium legacy brand. We also wanted to make a unique tie-in to Mike & Mike's roots. By referencing the hat in Mike's original character and refining it to work on its own, we were able to create something iconic that has a story. We then went a step further in re-working the original logo to be repurposed as a "school friendly badge" — to help shoppers quickly indicate that this is an allergy friendly product that's safe for kids.
