DONNA BELLA - PACKAGING

One of the most essential parts of establishing Donna Bella’s new brand identity is the packaging, as this is the element that consumers most tangibly interact with through sight, touch & experience. I had the pleasure of creative directing and designing all the new components for Donna Bella’s 300+ existing hair products, with the objective of embodying the new brand identity & conveying the desired brand sentiment to the costumer through one glance.  I introduced the concept of brand color & extension method association in order to emphasize the bold, editorial design while also making the consumer experience easier.

PACKAGING DESIGN

Creative Brief
Creative direct and design 300+ new packaging components for the launch of the elevated Donna Bella rebrand / new brand identity. With the objectives of industry innovation, striking design, target audience appeal, and function across a variety of retail environments (product is sold online, directly to salons / stylists & is anticipated to be in stores in 2026). Due to this variety, I felt it was essential that the new packaging design concept not only emphasize the elegance of the new brand identity, but leverage the brand colors to make customers product comprehension, discovery and product selection easier. Curate a brand color and hair extension method association that can be implemented across assets in a bold, intentional manor to curate a unified and positive brand experience.

Company
Beauty Industry Group (B.I.G. LLC)

Position
Senior Graphic Designer

Client
Donna Bella

Timeline
Aug - Nov 2024

15

2024

MATERIALS & CONSTRUCTION

Category:
Editorial Print Design

Deliverable:
5 Volume Series of magazine covers representative of holistic brand identity

  • Donna Bella has a fairly wide target audience as their products are sold to salons, online & are anticipated to be in stores in 2026. With this knowledge, I wanted the packaging design to catch the consumers eye by utilizing bold color while clearly establishing the aesthetic of the brand. Primarily targeting women in the between the ages of 20-45 who fall into the mid-range to high-end consumer bases, it was essential that we utilize materials that evoke a luxurious sentiment while also emphasizing a bright, outstanding design to raise brand awareness & visibility within a competitive beauty retail environment.

  • Noting our wide audience and anticipation of being on retail shelves next year, I wanted to ensure that our component was innovative, effective and full proof so that regardless of shipping or storefront handling, the displays would appear striking, elevated, consistent, and imaginative. Taking inspiration from unique component shapes used in the high fashion industry, I worked with our packaging & warehouse teams to ensure that we could properly secure and display the product within this type of component (tapered bag).

  • We referenced packaging examples in the high fashion industry for inspiration regarding sustainable materials & finishes that felt refined, elevated, and luxurious. We ultimately decided to use a tapered bag with a wider base for our primary packaging, as this shape allows for the hair to hang and rest naturally, while also featuring a clear window that allows for product visibility. In addition to the functional construction, this component also offers a distinctive & rare appearance which further emphasizes brand design.

  • We decided on the following materials in order to improve our packaging sustainability:

    Mohawk Sustainable Collection Paper
    Papers with recycled or alternative fibers
    Weight: 120C, heavier stock
    Rougher, natural paper-like feel
    Matte finish

    SWAY Firstwave Seaweed Film
    Certified 100% Biobased
    Certified Home & Industrial Compostable
    Majority Seaweed
    Smooth, true translucent
    Glossy finish

PRIMARY PACKAGING

Category:
Editorial Print Design

Deliverable:
Inside Spread magazine pages - volume 3

  • Creative direct and design 300+ packaging die lines for the launch of the new Donna Bella brand identity. The new packaging needs to hold the same products and display the same information as prior to the rebrand, but the design, the component, and configuration of the information should be entirely re-imagined to embody the new rebrand and establish our new aesthetic. Identify and source preferred materials / finishes that elevate the tactile consumer experience while prioritizing sustainability.

  • After working with RoAndCo on the Donna Bella rebrand, I began concepting how that could translate into packaging. I then introduced the brand color & hair extension method association idea to the team and finalized the new component shape. After brand approval, I worked with packaging experts to source materials, distributers and factories that would allow for a sustainable execution. I then corresponded with the Donna Bella brand team, the packaging team at Beauty Industry Group (B.I.G. LLC), our selected factories, and our warehouse teams to coordinate logistics of execution and ensure quality control across the variety of channels (salons, warehouses, retail, returns / exchanges).

ALL PRIMARY PACKAGING

Category:
Editorial Print Design

Deliverable:
Flat files - front cover, back cover & spine, 5 volumes of speed magazine

  • Primary Typeface - Arizona Serif
    Light, Light Italic & Thin
    Sentence Case & Title Case
    Tracking: 0%

    Secondary Typeface - PP Object Sans
    Regular & Bold
    Sentence Case & Title Case - Tracking: 0%
    All Caps - Tracking: 10%

  • Packaging team at Beauty Industry Group (B.I.G. LLC), Donna Bella brand team, warehouses owned / operated by Beauty Industry Group (B.I.G. LLC), several overseas packaging factories, in house copywrite team, & RoAndCo Studio (Brand Identity Design).

  • Adobe Illustrator | Adobe Photoshop | Figma

TOOLS & ACCESSORIES PACKAGING DESIGN

Category:
Editorial Print Design

Deliverable:
Flat files - front cover, back cover & spine, 5 volumes of speed magazine

  • Coral - #F95651
    PMS 178 C
    RBG 249 / 86 / 81
    CMYK 0 / 65 / 67 / 2 

    Pink – #F5D6DC
    PMS 4078 C
    RBG 245 / 214 / 220
    CMYK 0 / 13 / 10 / 4

    Peach – #FFBE98
    PMS 162 C
    RBG 255 / 190 / 152
    CMYK: 0 / 26 / 40 / 0

  • Charcoal – #1A1A1A
    PMS BLACK C
    RBG 26 / 26 / 26
    CMYK 0 / 0 / 0 / 90 

    Off-White – #F1F0EB
    PMS 9345 C
    RBG 241 / 240 / 235
    CMYK: 0 / 2 / 4 / 6

    Deep Coral – #D04D49
    PMS 2033 C
    RBG 208 / 77 / 73
    CMYK 0 / 63 / 65 / 19