DesignRepublic
Avenue Brugmannlaan 12A
Brussels
1060
Belgium
+32 2 203 20 82
Employees: 2 – 10
www.designrepublic.be/
Beverages Body Food Sustainability
About

We are an experienced, yet young at heart, branding and packaging design agency located in Brussels. Since the creation of the agency in 2009 we work for a diverse range of customers, from multinationals to local start-ups.

Our core business is situated in the FMCG while, at the same time, we have developed a strong expertise in sustainable packaging and corporate identity branding.

Our biggest strength is to combine creativity with a down to earth attitude, resulting in a design that is contemporary, attractive for its audience and has all the potential for becoming glorious.

Portfolio
Rosalie's

In 2020 Manufacture Belge de Chocolats (MBC) contacted us with a daring briefing: create a brand from scratch that is stylish, young, different and sustainable. MBC is a big player in the Belgian chocolate market: they own a 20.000m2 production site where since 1921 quality chocolates are produced. Their main partner is GODIVA chocolatier, a global leader in premium, artisanal chocolate. The solution we provided was bold: let’s create a statement brand with a mission. Instead of negative statements used on certain categories of products (‘smoking kills’), we decided to look on the bright side and make a positive statement (’these chocolates are sooooooo good for….’). We specially created Rosalie’s for travel retail, with a clear baseline to offer ‘loving kindness’, and a powerful CSR message: “these chocolates are soooo good for the planet, cocoa farmers and children”. The brand collaborates with Cocoa Horizons to ensure that all cocoa is ethically and sustainably sourced. The pastel colors used are a-typical for a chocolate range. Like this a maximal shelf impact is guaranteed. On the cover we used clear images of the chocolates that are within the box to achieve a what you see is what you get result.

Postel

Postel Beer, the abbey beer loved by all, young and old. Alken-Maes, part of the Heineken Group, reached out to us for a challenging beer project. The Postel brand had remained unchanged for more than 25 years and it was high time for rejuvenation to become a younger, fresher and more dynamic brand. On the other hand, of course, loyal buyers had to continue to find back their favourite product on the store shelf. We were briefed to play it safe, and to make an evolution of the current design. Which we did. However, throughout the process so many superb trailblazing ideas sparked, that we decided to retain one in our presentation to Alken-Maes. They were over the moon about the proposals, and surprisingly enough, also about the revolutionary concept that we sneaked in. Now, would they find the courage to present this route to the Norbertine monks? After a couple weeks of total silence, we got news. And did it kick in? Yes, it did indeed! The monks loved our out-of-the-box proposal. Moreover, they wanted to see more of it! We were given a green card to strip off old cluttered codes and to break Postel out of its medieval cage. The result is a brand new Postel, pure, young and with strong iconic and recognizable features expressing the same heritage and centuries of craftsmanship. Cheers!

Holy Berry

Holy Berry is a Belgian food start-up founded by Margaux and Stephen. The name ‘Holy Berry’ refers to the açaí berry, a berry with a particular nutritional value and considered as a real immunity booster, until recently, strangely enough, unprecedented on the Belgian market. Their frozen açaí packs are available since 2017. When Margaux and Stephen decided to sell the packs in individual units, they turned to us for the creation of an attractive, colourful packaging design and a slight rebranding. And how nice it is to help build the development and brand awareness of a product that is grown organically, sustainably and ethically at the same time. Holy Berry found a partner in Brazil with whom they can work directly according to their wishes: organic berry picking in wild nature and sustainable trade. Their partner is a lady who is very concerned about the wellbeing of the Amazon rainforest from which she comes and she guards the quality and sustainability of the berries. She is also a member of a fund that deals with employment and community work in the Amazon rainforest. Part of the income from their açaí purchase will be reinvested directly into this fund.

Winning Work
Company Contact
Mr Francis Van Acker
CEO & Co-Founder
Social Profiles