Coley Porter Bell and Morrisons unveil M Savers value range
Coley Porter Bell has created new packaging designs for supermarket Morrisons’ Value range, which has been renamed M Savers.
This forms part of the consultancy’s rebrand of the entire Morrison’s own brand range. As reported by Design Week in April last year, Morrisons tasked the consultancy with re-evaluating the brand strategy for its own-brand products.
The Morrisons M Kitchen ready meals was the first range to launch, and began rolling out in October last year. Other ranges will continue to roll out over the next 18 months.
The Value range, which includes about 350 products,has been renamed M Savers to ‘reflect its consumer benefit’, according to Coley Porter Bell.
Stephen Bell, creative director of Coley Porter Bell, says,‘A lot of value ranges have one-size-fits-all, cookie-cutter designs. We really like the idea of giving it some heart and some personality, but balancing that with looking really cared for but not too premium.’
The packaging sees the core logo accompanied by ‘hand-crafted product illustrations of product silhouettes and shapes in a naivist style’, in ‘foody’ colours against a white background.
Bell says, ‘The naive style is really charming and simple – it’s optimistic but the style is strong, so although every illustration is different the white background holds it together.’
Coley Porter Bell senior designer Craig Barnes created a bespoke typeface for the product descriptions shown within the illustrations, which were all drawn in-house at the consultancy.
Bell says, ‘These designs, which look handcrafted and quirky, contribute to the feeling that even Morrisons’ most humble products have been cared for by people. We’d like people to raise a little smile when they see these designs.’
Carol Turner, head of design for Morrisons, adds, ‘These designs are engaging and completely unique.’
The design looks great and a lot better than the current value range,but ‘These designs are engaging and completely unique.’ Waitrose comes to mind !
how refreshing! bright, clear, fun and eye-catching. It’s great that someone has woken up to the fact that value ranges don’t have to be an embarrassing purchase.
well done carol! another winner!
Really? I think it looks too cheap, the illustrations are terrible. Craig Barnes needs to go back to type school.
I think Coley Porter Bell should have spent a bit more time on this!
Why is there a dog on the nappies package?
Thank you for your comments Designer Tim, we value and appreciate all viewpoints as it helps to make us better at what we do.
And as for Craig….well I’m sending him to typography school in Switzerland ASAP.
Thank you Designer Tim for your comments. We really appreciate all viewpoints, good and bad, as they stimulate us and make us better at what we do.
And as for Craig, we are sending him to typography school in Switzerland forth with.
Very good. Cheap and Cheerful, not cheap and nasty (that old yellow, yeuch). BTW that’s a stylised outline of a Fisher Price toy doggie on the nappy packet. Clearly designers don’t have to walk in the slippers of the consumers…..
Well the proof is in the pudding. I purchased some baby wipes today that I never would have bought, with the old designed packaging. I agree its as good as waitrose essentials.
I think it strikes a good balance between being playful yet still maintaining a value for money image.Big fan.
It reminds me of some of the packaging Safeway used to have, which I always thought was better than Morrisons. Really like it
I’ve given a review of this design which has started quite a debate, check it out and leave a comment with your thoughts.
http://packagedwrappedandslightlyopinionated.blogspot.com/2012/01/m-savers-value-for-money.html
This looks so fresh and inviting, much better than the yellow before. The illustrations are charming and work better than the Sainsbury’s Basics packaging. The only reason the Sainsbury range work is because of the distinctive orange colour.
I actually like the silhouettes, even though they have been done before.
What I really don’t like is the colours… why only the ‘salad green’ seems correct?
The ‘laundry green’ looks like capsicum packaging instead! (it’s too dark) and the ‘tuna blue’ makes me think of a mechanical lub oil splash…
And why a dog silhouette on the nappies?? – I’m puzzled!
(why not just a simple silhouette of a nappy, to keep consistency throughout the range?)