Purple Cows

“Cows, after you’ve seen them for a while, are boring. They may be well-bred cows, Six Sigma cows, cows lit by a beautiful light, but they are still boring. A Purple Cow, though: Now, that would really stand out.” – Seth Godin

Seth Godin – an American entrepreneur, author and public speaker – wrote a book a few years back about the important of standing out in advertising. He notes that it used to be about checking of your favorite list of the 5 P’s: product, pricing, promotion, positioning, publicity, packaging, pass along, permission (souce).

Thing is, times have changed. Godin stresses we should, basically, always strive stand out from the homogenous herd of black-and-white cows. We should do something worth talking about, something worth paying attention to because boring stuff might as well not even exist. We need to do remarkable things.

So for today I’m going to exhibit some of the purple cows of package design that I have found to be remarkable.

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Remarkable Packaging

1. THIS Toothbrush: Concept packaging made by student Leen Saddler at the School of Visual Arts. She states the following about her package design concept: “THIS aims to repackage and promote the miswak as an organic, biodegradable, portable, more beneficial substitute for toothpaste and a toothbrush…” (The Dieline)

2. Kanonkop Estates’ Wines: Designed by Juanel Van Der Walt, a graduate of The Brand Communications School in Cape Town. He says the following: “The brief was to design packaging and a labels for an existing South African wine estate, and if needed, revise the estate’s logo….so the concept was shaped around Paul Sauer and his relationship with wine…he is secretly obsessed with pinotage (“The Mysterious Mistress” character) while being committed to his renowned relationship with cabernet sauvignon (characterized by “The Lady of the House”)” (The Dieline)

3.  Jooze Juice: Designed by Australian student Yunyeen Yang. She created a fictional manufacturer, Jooze. Designed as part of a school project, each Jooze packaging is “indicative of its flavour inside; a crafty detail encouraging children to consume healthier drinking habits from a young age”. (Wilding)

4. Organic Eggs: Designed by Lindsey Faye Sherman. This is purely conceptual.

5. A.B.’s Coffee and Crepes:  Designed by Lauren Schimming. University of Kansas”Inspired by origami folding cups, I created a variation on the traditional crepe cone that can be sealed for take-away orders. The crepe cone can also be fully unwrapped into a plate for both at-home and in-store use” (The Dieline).

6. Lancashire’s Library Bag: “The design has been created in conjunction with Lancashire’s `Get It Loud in Libraries` scheme and Oneighty Creative. The idea was to create a unique and original design made from 100% recycled materials for library users to carry their books home in.” (The Dieline)

7. Pangea Organics: Pangea just released a series of holiday gift boxes that actually grow Spruce Trees.

8. Sod Air Asia T-Shirt Promo: Designed by Prompt Design, Bangkok, Thailand. “From fresh idea of “Here! Sod” brand, introducing T-Shirt that makes fame from different angles by adding product value from its packaging”. (The Dieline)

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References

• Wilding, M. “Jooze Juice Cartoons.” Lost At E Minor. 27 Sep 2010. Web. 23 Mar 2011. <http://www.lostateminor.com/2010/09/27/jooze-juice-cartons/&gt;.
• ****video posted above was made by me (pictures were taken from The Dieline)