Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/297564
42 W i n e s & V i n e s M AY 2 0 1 4 take those standards and develop con- cepts that will challenge their assumptions as to the direction they want to look at. This may be in fairly large-scale form (e.g. silkscreen vs. paper), or it may be in usage of colors, textures or imagery," Hanson- Jerrard said. Frequently, clients have posi- tive reactions toward concepts they had not considered. Schuemann advised: "If you choose to redesign, hire an expert. This is not the place to experiment with DYI." Check designer references and insist on case studies showing a firm's success in accom- plishing similar projects. Hanson-Jerrard supplied specific rec- ommendations for creating a smooth pro- cess, with emphasis on the first meeting between designer and client. It's key, he said, to ensure a fully engaged and com- prehensive pre-design meeting occurs with the client decision-makers, allowing all to understand: i All the reasons for the redesign—from the commercial environment (on- vs. off-premise, DTC components, etc.) to internal reasons, i The brand owner's ultimate goal with the brand, i Which components of the current de- sign are static, flexible or to be ex- cluded: Colors, style, features, font, etc. This most important first meeting, he said, sets the stage for the entire client/ designer relationship. "The best advice I could give to smaller wineries that are thinking of updating or redesigning their packaging is to engage with the designer earlier than you would envision. "We find that many attempt to shorten the process by spending too much time internally tinkering with the current label prior to calling (a professional). We try to take the fear and cost away by offering to meet and talk through the process exten- sively prior to any commitment of engagement." During the initial meeting, clients should express their ideas and goal, while designers can explain their process and approach to the project. Watch the clock As with every aspect of wine packaging, timing is essential and delays can be costly. Winery clients tend to start by looking at an upcoming bottling schedule and then backtracking. To design, print and win approval of a new label, though, "The process can run anything from six weeks to nine months," according to Hanson-Jerrard. That's not including essential elements like TTB approval, which are, of course, "out of our control." Timelines for established wineries that have accomplished previous redesigns I n 2012 we recognized that the market was changing significantly (distributor and account consolidation), and that Clos LaChance needed to some help in the sales department," said marketing VP Cheryl Durzy. Aveniú Brands handles the winery's wholesale sales nationally. Aveniú's staff recognized that a previous redesign had not been well received. Durzy worked with Aveniú's in-house designer, who used feed- back from the sales team and devel- oped various prototypes. "We needed to keep certain colors assigned to certain varietals, because a signifi- cant amount of money had already been spent on custom capsules," Durzy said. "I initially wanted our original logo included on the label as well. How- ever, in looking at some of the options I recognized that our outlined logo, developed 20 years ago when we were a 1,000-case winery, was pretty hard to read, especially on the shelf of a fine wine store." The new design "is pretty different from our last two designs. Our first one had a hummingbird painting on it; the description on the back kept getting longer and longer based on what our sales people wanted on it. We made it more contemporary and simple…but it wasn't quite right. Aveniu really cleaned it up, determined what parts of our brand we should showcase. They made it what it is now, which is working really well for us." Clos LaChance not only changed the label, Durzy said. "We also decided to go screwcap for all our wines that are ready for drinking right away. It just made sense. I have been wanting to go to screwcap for all our wines for the past five or six years. For our estate Series, it was the right thing to do." The entire process, including lots of back and forth, took about three to four months, not including TTB approval. Labels come from Cork Supply; bottles from Diablo packaging, labels from Trysk in Seattle, Wash. With the new look on the market internationally since 2013, "I have heard nothing but positive remarks," Durzy said. One Canadian market didn't like the new design at first, she said. Durzy was willing to customize labels for it, but the Canadian custom- ers came to embrace the label, and the redesign remains on the shelves. "Getting feedback from customers is important. I believe it is important to think outside of the box and not constrain your ideas with traditional ideals—i.e., the logo," Durzy con- cluded. i ReSPOND TO CUSTOMeR FeeDBACK Clos LaChance Winery of San Martin, Calif. (60,000 cases) A hummingbird painting graced Clos LaChance's first label (left), and the simplified version (right) was not well-received. In 2013 the winery debuted new packaging (center) that pleased distributors and consumers alike. (Continued on page 46) C O V E R S T O R Y