Project Challenge:

Caspian Black Pearl is a company registered in Switzerland for acting in the field of packaging and selling Beluga Caviar (the most famous and expensive caviar in the World!). This company purchases caviar cans weighing 3-5 kg from Iran and Russia, packs them in small packages weighing 10, 20, 50 and 100 grams and sells them to customers of this luxurious food in Europe and the USA.

At the beginning of my cooperation with the company, the first project was the design of a logo for the company’s brand which was named the same as its name “Caspian Black Pearl”. The main demand of the client was using the first letter of company’s name i.e. “C” in design and integrating it with one of the caviar symbols which was considered as the greatest and most important challenge of the project. Also, the company insisted on designing the label of caviar cans from a new and unique idea in order to achieve its place in the highly competitive market (caviar).

Due to the new and unrecorded nature of this brand, the project must have been progressed with the high accuracy and most delicacy, because any minor mistake in each stage of work might incur substantial damage to the company according to the statement of the company’s marketing and branding manager. A damage potential to be non- compensable.

Strategy/Methodology:

Due to the high sensitivity of the project and the expensiveness of the business, the project must have proceeded carefully. We performed large scale researches on the special and luxurious business in the first phase of the project. This research encompassed the race of caviar fishes, the shape and color of seeds, manner of supplying, the customers, and the correct manner of using this valuable food material. Caviar world is very vast and full of amazing stories and we considered it a long and exciting journey.

During researches, I observed a substantial point which was a good beginning for logo design. The fact was that the most valuable variety of caviar fish named Beluga forms its body in C form in order to deal with the high pain during laying. Finally, I started to design the logo of the brand and achieved the final design accepted by the client, though several designs and selection of one of them.

In the project of designing the labels of caviar cans, the first idea was using a paper with special and different coverage for printing labels. Finally, we achieved a back-pasting and oysters-covered paper which was harmonized with the brand name and luxuriousness nature of oyster coverage in the final product provided a stylish and cute appearance to it. For ensuring the uniqueness of the idea of using paper with oyster coverage, we performed highly accurate and deep researches in this industry and; reviewing mostly all caviar brands worldwide, we founded that we use this technique for printing the label of cans of the company’s brand caviars.

Solution/Contribution:

After completion of the logo and label design of the caviar can, in order to ensure the choice, we made in the project, on the suggestion of the marketing team and I, we prepared a number of early mockups of caviar cans, and with the supply of caviar among grocery stores and customers, we got aware of a very interesting point. At the start of the work, we put the cans on the available store shelves for this product along with other brands of caviar.

According to the comments of the people who came to the store to buy this product, our products due to the design of the logo and the label, were attracting to themselves. Secondly, according to a poll conducted by many of the customers of the product, they thought that CASPIAN BLACK PEARL brand was an old brand with a background. But when we told them the truth, it was not believable to them!

Results/Impact:

After the final rounds of research on logo design and labels, CASPIAN BLACK PEARL started producing products and printing labels. We introduced the design of the logo and product labels in the A’DESIGN AWARD & COMPETITION 2019, a prestigious international competition, during the first series of production, upon offer of the company.

After the nomination of the design and review by the jury, it won the Silver award in the Graphics and Visual Communication Design Section that can be considered as a milestone for many other successes of the brand. Today, the CASPIAN BLACK PEARL brand has reached a level beyond expectations, to the point where, despite the fact that the products are currently in production and not yet marketed, however, orders from around the world and even Asian countries have been received according to the sales unit’s statements.