Featured image for Studio Spotlight: Saint Bernadine Mission Communications

Studio Spotlight: Saint Bernadine Mission Communications

by Diane Lindquist on 10/15/2013 | 6 Minute Read

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Saint Bernadine Mission Communications was established in 2004 with the goal of creating effective work without a house style and without preconceived notions of how best to solve client problems. The result is a body of work with an emphasis on authenticity, storytelling, and relevance. These principles have driven positive business results for our clients while being recognized internationally for our creative work.

While we clearly love packaging, we are multidisciplinary and media agnostic by design – and consider every client's problem a unique opportunity. Strategic direction flows from the business case, leading to creative solutions that follow through on a core strategic vision. Ultimately, we strive for a simple, focused solution that grabs the customer's attention and doesn't let go.

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All projects below are designed by Saint Bernadine Mission Communications, Vancouver, BC

Evil Spirits Distillery

Evil Spirits is a new premium spirits line that is painstakingly crafted to be sinfully enjoyed. St. Bernadine was tasked with package design and a media kit for the launch.

Evil Spirits Vodka is the product of a distilling craft so refined it must have been exchanged for diabolical favours. St. Bernadine extended this brand promise through every detail of the design language. Custom word mark? Evil. Spirit renderings in matte varnish? Evil. Recipe card? Evil. Ouiji board with commemorative cast pewter planchette? Evil. It’s time to succumb to the guilty pleasure of Evil Spirits.

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R&B Brewing Co.

R&B Brewing is one of Vancouver's original East Van micro breweries, predating the current trend by almost two decades. Partners Rick ("R") and Barry ("B") asked St. Bernadine to help with a packaging redesign, initiated by the move from 650mL bottles to a standard 341mL 6-pack format.

The design language is inspired by R&B's resolutely hand crafted product – as such, every element on the packaging is rendered by hand, including the bar code. Bold silhouette key illustrations take their cues from the beers' quirky naming conventions, and strong colours aid standout and shelf blocking. Key brand story elements, hand rendered in expressive type, and additional varietal information, like IBU scale, boil information, aging temperature, hop and barley type and mix all support R&B's independent, craft positioning.

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Long Table Distillery

Long Table Distillery is a producer of handcrafted, premium, small-batch spirits based in Vancouver, BC. Its West Coast heritage, expert knowledge, and dedication to organic, high-quality ingredients were the foundation for the design by Saint Bernadine Mission Communications Inc. A design identity that reflected the distillery’s commitment to craft and focus on small-batch quality was developed for its selection of unique gins, vodkas, and specialty spirits.

The design system needed to accommodate colour coding for flavours of their permanent line, as well as a system to allow for small artisan batches that are sold principally on site. To reflect the artisanal quality of the brand, key elements included a hand-stamped batch number, handwritten varietal, perforated edges, and dotted rules that act as a device to divide information on the label.

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Public Market on Granville Island Shopping Bags

Granville Island is a world leading arts and culture hub and a welcoming public space that provides visitors with a unique, sensory cultural experience. When the Public Market on Granville Island required reusable shopping bags, they needed to reflect the vibrancy and energy that the Public Market is so well known for.

St. Bernadine designed the bags to be attractive, while still durable and easy to reproduce. Each bag is printed with just black and white inks on a coloured material for affordablility, while still allowing for freshness and vibrancy.

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Original 16 Beer

Great Western Brewing Company, from Saskatoon, Canada, enlisted St. Bernadine to develop a new, premium Canadian Pale Ale for the domestic market. The brewery was founded in 1989 by 16 employees, who fought to save their jobs when a merger between Carling and Molson threatened to close the plant. They bought the brewery, and went on to win many international awards for their beer. Twenty-five years later, this new beer is a tribute to the original 16 founders of Great Western Brewing Company, and the spirit, passion and dedication they have brought to brewing the best beer possible.

Premium cues include refined typography, ample white space, and silver metallics with gold accents. Within one year of launch, Original 16 became the best-selling domestic premium beer in their home market.

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Toaster

Every St. Bernadine’s Day (May 20th), Saint Bernadine Mission Communications creates a commemorative object to celebrate with friends, clients, and suppliers. This year, wanting to bring a little joy to their morning routine, we developed The Morning Miracle Toaster. When bread is prepared in the Morning Miracle Toaster, an image of Saint Bernadine miraculously appears. This promo item not only demonstrates branding in its most literal sense, but also pays homage to genuine manifestations of spiritual symbols found in the natural world.

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St. Bernadine Miracle Twist Opener

Every St. Bernadine’s Day (May 20th), Saint Bernadine Mission Communications creates a commemorative object to celebrate with friends, clients, and suppliers. This year’s gift is not just a super handy twist top beverage opener, but a miraculous statuette as well. When placed overtop of a foaming beer, liquid is channeled up through the statuette’s eyes, and St. Bernadine miraculously weeps for you with every wasted drop.

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