Yes, we know that summer has only just arrived, but if you want to capitalise on the Christmas gift market you'll need to have your Christmas packaging wrapped up very soon.   Ideally, your Christmas packaging will be completed and include pack shots, pricing and samples, by the end of June.  Why so early? Several of the big retailers have large media Christmas gift launches in the summer and #ChristmasinJuly has gained a lot of traction over the last few years. In fact, there is...

You’ve been on the food market circuit for a while and perhaps even have a couple of local retailers stocking your products, but how do you grow your stockists and reach new retailers potentially hundreds of miles away? The time might be right for you to start talking to food and drink wholesale distributors.Working with food and drink wholesale distributors can be an effective way to reach a wide network of retailers and can significantly aid your business growth. However, there are several...

The food packaging industry has evolved massively over the last couple of decades. Gone are the days when packaging was produced as cheaply as possible, with the sole purpose of simply holding a product (and in some cases to extend its' shelf life a little). Now, the expectation is that packaging needs to work much harder for its money. Today, the fact that packaging makes food products look desirable, keeps them well protected and in perfect condition just isn't enough. Consumers want it to con...

First impressions are everything and if “the first bite is taken with the eye”, then regardless of how amazing, unique or delicious your product, the packaging will need to work hard to be successful in the food and drink market. Packaging will often be the first point of contact a customer has with you and your goods, and when it's sat on a crowded shelf or market stall, it needs to excite, entice and engage in a matter of seconds. The power of food and drink branding In 2016, a top 4 UK su...

You’ve recognised your vision and shaped your creation, you’ve tested it on your family and friends (they loved it of course); You might even have hit the streets with it, to make sure you have taken on board the feedback on the best flavour, presentation, size, and price. You now need to think about your packaging and food labelling, if you haven’t already started to do so. It’s not just the colour, typography, texture, size and shape you need to consider; there are also regulations and...

So, you've been cooking up a storm in the kitchen and your friends and family are raving about your culinary skills and now you’re ready to see if there’s a place for you and your scrumptious new product on the food market. However, bringing a new product to market can be particularly tricky in the food and drink industry. With so many choices out there already, you need to make sure you get it right first time.Where do you start with launching your new product? Find your USPHow does y...

So you have a lovey market stall at a farmer’s market, in a quaint little village and now you’re ready for the next step: you want to sell your produce further afield. You know people like the way it tastes, you have plenty of repeat customers who rave about your recipe and visit your stall week after week. Your customers are making comments like “My friends would love this” and “You need to get this in the supermarkets”. You’re thinking; 'What a good idea, this time next year Rodn...

So you've nailed the farmer’s markets, your products are well known locally, maybe on the shelves of your local shop, but how do you take the next step to grow your food business? You love your product, you're passionate about your product, but Monday morning comes and you have to go back to your day job. You spend your time there trying to work out how you can make your food business pay a decent enough wage to allow you to escape working for someone else and take the reins yourself. This cou...

Good graphic design is an often underrated part of the marketing mix, but as designers and marketers, we’ve seen first hand the impact of graphic design on marketing results. Invest in design to supercharge your marketing activity in these five ways... 1. Make your marketing more memorable Impactful design is the key to making your marketing more memorable. If no one remembers your message, your marketing spend is as good as wasted. 2. Differentiate your business from your competitors ...

Your business brand is more than just your logo and colours – it’s your values, the way you speak, the personality you convey. Consistent brands provide the same experience wherever you come across them, whether it’s in person, on social media or on their website. It makes you more recognisable Being the same everywhere helps you stand out. For a start, it makes it less likely for people to confuse you with other brands. Consistency also breeds familiarity, making it easier for people...

Somerset-based MMA Architectural are sole UK distributors for the Jakob range of quality stainless steel wire rope assemblies, tie rods and fittings. The products are predominantly used in commercial environments such as office buildings, bridges, zoos, car parks and public spaces. MMA Architectural MD Justin Errington was faced with a dilemma: a need to ‘make visual sense’ of a rapidly growing business and the development of separate, niche marketplaces. He came to the decision that the e...

Your brand is not a physical thing. It’s the perception of your business that others have and the feelings that your business or product(s) evoke.

Old Mill Accountants and Financial Planners have always recognised the value of creative corporate graphic design. It plays a valuable role in communicating their expertise to a wide and varied client base. Wisdom is the latest Old Mill flagship magazine, produced exclusively for their rapidly expanding Private Wealth market. Featuring industry insight and specialist advice, the magazine includes articles on pension planning, investment portfolios and probate. Both informative and inspiration...

An imaginary fist pump was my inital reaction when I heard that we were going to be given the opportunity to design and build the new LED Architects website. Architects, as we all know, are designers. And as designers they are very visual. They like their work to tell the story with big, interesting and powerful project images – not the usual stock photography you find on every Tom, Dick and Harry's website. This is a web designer's dream, and I was chomping at the bit to get started on it. ...

Antony Lovedale founded Active Robots over 10 years ago as a catalogue and online reseller of robot parts and accessories to hobbyists and enthusiasts. But a recent expansion into higher value robots for use in education, academic research and corporate applications meant that Antony needed to create a separate business to address the needs of this rapidly growing market. Following a recommendation from a business contact, Antony met with Cognique and discussed his requirements. We quickly came ...

Vinyl aficionado Stephen Waldron approached Cognique to make a lifelong dream come true: to own his own record shop. He already had a brilliant name (Fuzzy Warbles Vinyl Records), the notion of selling niche genre vinyl online and an idea for how his logo should look. But what he needed was someone to help him deliver the whole package professionally, and within a few short weeks. Based on the business name we first developed an 'A Clockwork Orange' inspired identity: Once the identity was app...