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Success Story: Compass Design Exceeds Expectations in Designing New Packaging for Kemps/Marigold Foods

Minneapolis (November 22, 1999) -- Compass Design loves a challenge. When the Minneapolis-based design group was selected by Kemps/Marigold Foods to update the packaging for their 10 year-old line of holiday ice cream novelties, a challenge is exactly what they got.

Kemps had recently redesigned their logo, and wanted to take that opportunity to update the packaging. In addition to the novelties, Kemps was also introducing two new flavors of holiday-themed ice cream and asked Compass to design packaging that carried the same look and feel as the ice cream novelties. "The Kemps project really put our team to the test," said Mitch Lindgren, partner/designer at Compass Design. "We needed to design a package that said "holiday" without saying "Christmas." It needed to look "high quality" without looking too "premium," and, because ice cream novelties are considered an impulse buy, the packaging needed to be eye-catching, yet innovative enough to stay fresh on the shelves throughout its entire three-month selling period."

Kemps Turns to Compass for Seconds

Patti Johnson, Kemps assistant product manager, novelties, said Kemps immediately thought of Compass Design because of work they had done on Kemps "Half Pints" line of flavored milks. "We knew Compass would provide a fresh perspective," says Johnson, "and they rose to the task." The line of holiday novelties -- which includes MiniCones, MiniSandwiches, Frosty Trees and Winter Snowmen -- is sold throughout the upper Midwest from November through January. Johnson said that the products have always been very popular with consumers, with sales continuing to grow each year. Johnson said that "Kemps expects to sell several hundred thousand during the1999-2000 season."

From Concept to Final Product

The first step for the package design professionals was category research. "We went into area stores to see what kind of packaging was currently used in the category," explained Julia Hemphill, partner/sales at Compass Design. "Because we don't want our client's product to look like it belongs to someone else's line, we study the store setting and our competitors' approaches -- their use of color, type, and shape."

Hemphill added that this is usually the time when products are sampled, to get a better understanding of the product. "Unfortunately, because the novelties were a seasonal product, we couldn't see or taste them," explained Hemphill. "So we had to rely on product descriptions and visuals from previous packaging." The same was true for the two new flavors of ice cream: because they were seasonal, they had yet to be produced.

Once the competitive information was gathered and shared with the rest of the group, an impromptu brainstorming session was called. "We tossed around ideas of what elements represent winter to the upper Midwest," said Tom Arthur, Compass Design partner/designer. "We knew right away that we wanted to use red and green on the package, but the mix had to be just enough so it didn't look too 'Christmas-y.' Other than that, we were open to anything."

From these directional ideas, each designer developed pencil concepts to represent a "thumbnail" of possible packaging. "Pencil sketches are an important part of our creative philosophy," said Lindgren. "We save a lot of time by doing our beginning sketches quickly by hand, rather than on the computer. We can see immediately what is and what is not going to work before it is pulled through on the computer."

After regrouping to share their sketches and decide on which approach to take, the design team continued to work together as the project moved forward. "We've found that a collaborative approach to design really best benefits our clients, "explained Lindgren. "As each designer working on the project takes the concept to the next level, they continue to get input from the other members of the team." Lindgren added that rather than relying on pre-existing fonts, Compass often prefers to create hand-lettered type that gives each client's package a proprietary look.

The final choice made by Kemps was one that Lindgren said was recommended by the team: blue and white flecks of falling snow against a dimensional background of blue and white swirled mounds of snow. "We felt this design achieved all our client's objectives," said Lindgren. "It was eye-catching, the red and green lettering gave it a festive, holiday feel that would work over a long selling season, and it said "high quality".

The package design combined many elements. Lindgren hand-lettered each product's type to make each one unique. In order to create the mounds of snow, Lindgren and his team used a photo of silk to get the exact look they wanted. To add to the crispness of the package design, new artwork illustrating the four novelty products also was created.

Shape of Ice Cream Carton Was a Consideration

Even after the packaging design was approved by Kemps, Compass Design still had one more challenge ahead of them: making sure that the design flowed with the multi-paneled, half-gallon containers which would hold the two new flavors of ice cream. "It was quite a task," said Lindgren. To ensure that the design would work with the container's many different angles and complex dielines, Compass Partner/ Production Designer Rich McGowen constructed several "mini" package mocks-ups.

Compass Design's perseverance and attention to detail paid off. "In order for this project to be successful, Compass needed to successfully address a number of issues," said Kemps' Johnson, "and they did. We're thrilled with the package design -- it's created a lot of excitement at Kemps."

Compass Design is a dynamic, Minneapolis-based design office specializing in comprehensive identity and consumer packaging programs for established and growing companies. With its exceptionally experienced and knowledgeable staff, Compass Design strives for integrity and accuracy in its cost-effective, award-winning strategic design solutions. For more information on Compass Design, please contact Julia Hemphill at (612) 339-1595.