Ziggurat draws up new look for Camel Lights

The legendary camel on RJ Reynolds’ cigarette brand has undergone its first radical image change since 1913. Ziggurat has redesigned Camel Lights packaging for the cigarette manufacturer in a bid to break the mould in the Lights sector.

The revamped pack, launched in the UK this Monday, features a photographic image of a brass camel sculpture. The camel is set against a stylised desert scene including pyramid, palm trees and setting sun, with a “camel shadow cast across cool watery blue sand”, says an RJR spokesman.

The white background has been replaced by blue to “suggest all the strength, mystique and romance of an intense desert sky with a warm sunrise – and a smooth character reminiscent of the actual smoking experience”, says Ziggurat design director Paul Davies.

“The new camel still has the questing, challenging spirit that the brand’s smoker identifies with. But he has smartened up and his personality has been brought out,” says Davies.

The new design has been well-received in trials in Germany, with sales showing an 80 per cent increase since its launch on the German market in January.

“It’s not often you get the chance to significantly change an image of such international power. Along with Coca-Cola, Camel is one of the most internationally recognised consumer symbols. We are looking forward to people’s reactions,” says RJR UK’s group product manager Charles MacLean.

Ziggurat won the job in a three-way paid, creative and strategic pitch against an unnamed German consultancy and RJR’s in-house design team.