Jim Beam Raises Its Warm Spirits In All-New Global Visual Identity
Image courtesy of Beam Suntory
Jim Beam is raising its glass to the most nostalgic and authentic qualities of its heritage with a new global brand campaign and refreshed visual identity.
To help emanate the “down-to-earth warmth” and informality that it’s been known for for generations, the classic American bourbon whiskey maker enlisted brand design agency Turner Duckworth to strike an emotional connection between the company and its communications. The revamp includes a campaign, entitled People Are Good For You, reminding fans that “there’s no feeling more special than being around other people,” reads the press release.
The centerpiece, however, is the Jim Beam bottle, whose label, typography, and red rosette are etched into the joyful memories of generations. While Jim Beam is preserving these prized motifs, it’s also decided to redraw them “with a timeless quality true to the bottle’s memory: woodcut illustration inked, printed, and foiled.”
Matt Lurcock, creative director at Turner Duckworth London, says that when the team chatted with Jim Beam’s great grandson Fred Noe, they learned that many of the brand’s decisions have stemmed from the Beam family gathering around their porch. It was here that “Beam was first bottled and shared, where traditions were born, and where folks came together time and again for more than seven generations,” Lurcock continues.
“Bringing this spirit of the porch together with the unmistakable marks of Jim Beam retained all the brand’s familiarity, but packed it full of warm, honest soul.”
The agency has also introduced a new bespoke typeface borrowing elements from Jim Beam bottles through the years, along with a more rounded, re-illustrated logotype to convey a more welcoming image.
Old (left) VS new (right) design. Images 103675707 © Daniel James | Dreamstime.com and Beam Suntory
“We started this process by going back to our heritage as a brand crafted through the generations by the first family of bourbon,” expresses Jim Beam’s global brand vice president Veronique Mura. “Jim Beam is an iconic brand that has celebrated the power of human connection for over 200 years, going back to the front porch of the Beam family home where everyone was welcome.”
“Our new global brand campaign puts our authenticity and warmth on full display and reminds audiences that there’s no feeling more special than being around other people.”
The overall feel, although beaming all the things that are true to Jim Beam’s history, is refreshing and contemporary.
[via Beam Suntory, images via various sources]
