From:Packaging Digest

Redesign centered on the product’s move to custom beauty photography paired with an updated take on the arctic billboard.

Redesigned packaging for Unilever’s Klondike Kones ice cream treats breaks through the competition with a sales-gaining look that heightens appetite appeal. Brand owner and designer explain why and how the changes were made to “scream” taste appeal.

While we all scream for ice cream, the new packaging design for Klondike Kones frozen treats screams “taste appeal” to take back market share lost over the last several years.

Owned by Unilever and distributed in mass channels throughout Canada, Klondike Kones combine flavorfully decadent ingredients in a convenient wrapped and cartoned cone form.

“The Klondike Canada portfolio has grown over time, from the 1990s to today, with several strong introductions recently including Klondike Kandy Bars and new flavors in the core mix,” says Leslie Miller, senior brand manager, Unilever. “With a range of bars, Kones, Kandy bars and sandwiches, Klondike is one of Canada’s favorite frozen treats.”

Canada Klondike’s business was redesigned in 2009 with an easily recognizable brand block and construct, according to Miller. Yet soon sales cooled amidst fresh competition.

“Unfortunately, in 2014, one of our biggest segments–Klondike Kones–was facing steep competition, declining sales and underwhelming pack graphics in a world where appetite appeal had become king,” she says. “With minimal support and time, packaging was a key source for marketing to turn this range around.”

The brand turned to Little Big Brands to handle the project to revive the languishing brand with refreshed packaging design.

“Looking to use packaging as a source of turnaround we needed an agency that was proven to use pack creative as a catalyst for success – LBB,” says Miller.  “We did a deep dive around how to keep the cones consistent with the rest of the range, yet dial up the product appeal and proposition—with no time for product development.  We chose LBB because we needed an agency that could keep mind of the rest of the range and make significant improvements to drive the business. Its focus and skill was great on helping us understand what elements we could push to really enhance the design and create a new look and feel.”

The redesign was all about ramping up the flavor cues and giving the brand an on-shelf package that would beg consumers to pick it up, according to Pamela Long, LBB partner.

“Cones are meant to be about flavor, fun and indulgence, the packaging needed to live up to that,” she says. “We achieved that by focusing on the product itself and in particular moving the brand to custom photography - the only way to create the needed taste appeal. That was paired with an updated take on the arctic billboard for which the brand is famous.

With the new look, you know exactly what you are getting in the box and can feel great that it's going to be delicious and satisfying!”

Kones are sold in cartons included two current SKUs, vanilla & chocolate and vanilla & caramel, and the launch of Chocolate & Caramel. Individually wrapped Kones include 3 SKUs—Vanilla & Chocolate, Chocolate & Caramel and Strawberry.

Redesign of three-product line  sold in Canada coincides with a new flavor, Chocolate & Caramel.

Screaming taste appeal

One of Unilever’s challenges was budget related. “The toughest challenge was that we didn’t have the budget to redo the whole range, so we had to be mindful of the current brand pack construct while truly moving the needle on the Kones,” says Miller. “LBB did a great job on keeping the architecture similar, but working with color and texture to pop the Kones.

“At LBB’s suggestion, we also reshot the products, to improve appetite appeal and round out the new look and feel.  We were also challenged, in the same realm, because we saw some incredible designs that could push the needle, but were too far from current and possibly too far for the brand to go, especially without ancillary communications.”

According to LBB’s Long, the competition provided the biggest cue for the redesign.

“That was the need to really ‘scream’ taste appeal – which is achieved through real-life imagery and photography for many competitive brands,” she says. “People are shopping the aisle looking for something that looks delicious and indulgent, and the competition was doing that better. We needed to not just be comparable; we needed to stand out as a superior taste experience.”

Side-by-side comparisons of the new (above left) and previous design show the major changes that included rebranding and reorientation of the cone to show more of the toppings.

A major unifying element for the entire Klondike brand is an arctic landscape is typically incorporated in some manner. That was one of the existing brand elements that LBB “amped” up with Kones.

“We added cyan to the packs to highlight the ‘Kones’ name and incorporated that cyan on the top portion of the pack to play off the arctic sky and add a cool frostiness to the pack,” Long explains. “Color coding by SKU was generally consistent with the previous design, though we added a new SKU, Chocolate & Caramel, and gave it a rich magenta that fit nicely within in the current lineup while differentiating the new flavor.”

She outlines the main design changes in this “before and after” of highlights:

The name was changed from Klondike to Klondike Kones: The naming convention as a brand is to include a sub-brand. That was part of the problem with the previous offering. With a less-than- realistic product image and no sub-brand, it was making it more difficult than need be for people to shop the brand.

The Klondike name was moved to the top of the carton to “amp up taste appeal,” says Long. “We really wanted to make the Kones the main focal point of the pack. And as the Klondike name and brand are very strong and recognizable, we knew they could sit proudly top of pack and still carry the same punch.”

There’s more of a focus on the top of the cones.

“This speaks to doing a better job of communicating to people what the product is and giving them a better sense of the many layers of ingredients that make up Klondike Kones,” Long explains. “ The nooks and crannies of the top of the Kone hold rivers of chocolate and caramel, nuts and chocolate and caramel pieces – only by showing the top do you understand the layers of flavor and deliciousness that you get with a Kone.”

The arctic landscape also received a makeover: “Just like the Kones themselves, the arctic landscape became more true to life and dimensional. We added the cyan blue sky to really play off the cold, icy landscape and bring a cool freshness to the pack. The traditional snowy mountains were also enhanced by adding a frozen icescape to the bottom of pack with the Klondike bear etched into the ice for a little added playfulness.”

The cartons feature two primary display panels, one in English and one in French.

“We changed the side panels,” says Long. “Before, each side held a nutritional panel with ingredients, with the redesign we used one of the side panels to highlight the delicious ingredients that go into making Klondike Kones such a scrumptious treat!”

The results literally speak volumes about the success of the redesign. “So far, Kones are up more than +10% in 2015, driven greatly by the new design,” says Miller. “When you walk a Canadian shelf, the products stand out, showcasing great products that haven’t strayed from the Canada look and feel.”