We started working with the team at Matchanoyu in 2018, when they presented us with the challenge of creating a youthful matcha brand. We came up with a full package of graphic elements, including the logo, colour palette, and patterns. For the logotype, we took inspiration from the Chasen — the bamboo whisk used in the traditional Japanese tea ceremony — and transformed it into a unique letter “A”. The colour palette was carefully curated to evoke quality and youth, as well as the product’s naturally vibrant hue. These elements were applied to all the packaging formats created for the brand, from gift set boxes to individual tin cans and sachets. Each format is sleek and matted for a more luxurious finish and a sense of muted, low-key indulgence.

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When Matchanoyu then planned to release a new product — a ceremonial matcha blend with collagen peptides — they returned to us with the challenge of designing special packaging for ‘Matcha Glow’. Keeping in line with the brand’s concept of an “everyday” ceremony, we used a simple design principle of a tearing stripe across a cardboard box to create a more relaxed yet always exciting experience for the consumer. It turns away from the traditional conventions of a formal, inaccessible, and rare ritual previously associated with traditional tea ceremonies. We also added a pastel shade of pink to the green palette to give a playful twist on the conventional perception of matcha. The green and pink combination communicates the product’s premium natural ingredients, whilst simultaneously evoking imagery of healthy skin and youthful radiance.

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By breaking away from the restrictive conventions of traditional Japanese matcha, we helped Matchanoyu to reinvent the drink as a staple of modern everyday living. The fresh and youthful brand is eye-catching to the new generation’s health-conscious crowd, and has found an established place in the popular wellness market of today.