FDBusiness.com

Taylors of Harrogate, a family business that dates back to 1886, has earned itself a reputation for quality through its devotion to the craft of outstanding coffee and tea. Finding itself struggling to resolve inherent tensions in the present day – the brand is both conservative and contemporary, traditional and progressive, considered and entrepreneurial – Taylors of Harrogate turned to Pearlfisher to hone its vision and futureproof its portfolio around a new, unique expression.

Craft is at the heart of Taylors of Harrogate, but the inundation of ‘craft’ as an expression of authenticity in every category was diluting the brand’s positioning. To understand the role of artistry in the context of the brand’s heritage, Pearlfisher explored an extension of ‘craft’ into ‘craftsmanship’. Bringing this together with a focus on ‘family’ and ‘flavour,’ two foundational values for the brand, Pearlfisher defined a new vision – ‘The Home of Extraordinary Flavour’ – to take Taylors forward.

Yael Alaton, Chief Strategy Officer at Pearlfisher, says: “By evoking a sense of ceremony, a celebration of service and culture, and the closeness of a family home with avenues for experimentation, the new vision and direction we have defined for Taylors of Harrogate brings all that the brand stands for to the fore with confidence, coherence and exciting scope for creative expression.”

The new Taylors of Harrogate identity mark – a lockup of the T and H that forms a window – is inspired by the idea of opening up a beautiful world of flavour, or peering into a space of revered expertise. To reflect the brand’s position on ‘craftsmanship’ – a focus on the makery and innovation, as opposed to the visual expression of ‘craft’ – Pearlfisher centralised the packaging for each range around exquisite, hand-drawn illustrations.

Jonathan Ford, Founding Creative Partner and Pearlfisher London CEO, says of this approach, “We commissioned three artists from different corners of the world to bring a unique artistic aesthetic to the packaging expression for each range.

For Taylors’ premium single origin coffees, Bangkok-based artist Suthipa Kamyam created fine illustrations inspired by the location of each variant. Instead of highlighting maps and terroirs, the illustrations hero the specialness of just one ingredient from each region.

The range of green teas and fruit and herbal infusions, illustrated by artist David Bates, is purposefully abstract, breaking from the category standard of depicting fruit on pack by using expressive, illustrated strokes to evoke the power of flavour.

The most iconic range, Taylors’ lifestyle roast and ground coffees has been illustrated by Izutso Hiroyuki. Uniting vibrant colours with bold, hand-painted graphics, the packaging takes a more emotive stance, linking coffee to an emotion, a memory or a moment in time – ‘Lazy Sunday’ or ‘After Dark,’ for example – rather than a place of origin or a roast.”

Taylors of Harrogate Marketing Director, Dom Dwight, says of the redesign: “Pearlfisher has done a brilliant job to reinvent our brand while paying homage to our roots, safeguarding our standards, and celebrating our inherent creativity. With our new branding, we feel confident in taking on fast-changing consumer and category dynamics as we enter a new phase of our history.”