Club Ramen
Oishii!
The instant noodle world has a bad rep. Mainly because most of the products out there are notorious for being unhealthy. But that’s not Jasper and Ludo Maignot’s style. Their vision was to create freshly made ramen noodles and a range of tasty broths-without all of the usual 2 minute noodle nasties. Thus Club Ramen was born. Whether you choose the Tonkotsu Pork, Katsu Chicken Curry or the vegetarian Miso Ginger-they are all delicious on their own, or teamed up with your favourite side options. Be prepared to slurp your way to instant nirvana!
Curious was commissioned to design the branding and packaging for Club Ramen. The first step in the process though was to create a bespoke box shape that reflected the origins of the product and its natural ingredients. That’s when we turned to the best in the business, Mat Bogust from Think Packaging. The solution was simple, but brilliantly constructed. A traditional tapered noodle box provided the foundations, but a curved lid was then designed to soften and complement the angular form.
Once the actual construction was established, we then settled on a kraft board for the perfect finish. Most of the competitor’s instant noodle packaging comes in white plastic or laminated cardboard, which inevitably adds to the ‘manufactured’ feel of their products and compromises sustainability credentials. The kraft board allowed us to give Club Ramen an immediate point of difference with its unique natural and street food vibe.
With the physical packaging setting the tone, the graphic content was then addressed. Instead of pursuing traditional design architecture of a separate brand name and imagery, we felt that there was a unique opportunity to create a holistic ‘story telling’ message in a visual way. The Club Ramen name transforms into noodles, which then connect to the hand held chopsticks. This perfectly encapsulates the simplicity and convenience of the product. The textured illustration style along with a muted colour palette adds the essential touches of authenticity. Finally, nuanced design details such as the introduction of a noodle barcode, a ‘Ramen for Life’ device and a joyful maneki-necko (beckoning cat) character add subtle layers of interest to complete the presentation.
