Karkli
Branding and packaging for south Indian snacks for the UK pub market
Industry
Snack Foods
Role
Freelance project
Branding
Illustration
Packaging
Tools
Adobe Illustrator
Intro
Nan's recipe goes swimmingly with a nice pint
Karkli was a small independent family business that made chakli - a veggie snack from south India, made from a family recipe passed down through generations. Being a perfect companion to craft beer, it was aimed to be sold in pubs and breweries across the UK.
’Kark’ is the sound it makes when you chomp on the crunchy snack. The family name, Kolar, also starts with a K, so ‘kark’ + ‘chakli’ = KARKLI!
The process
Honouring the history
Honouring the trust invested in me by my client to convey the brand’s heritage was of the upmost importance to me.
To reflect this and the homemade quality of the product, I was inspired by traditional art forms from India, especially woodblock hand-carved textile stamps and traditional textile designs, and for the colour palette, colourful spices available in the markets.
The Karkli logo is directly influenced by woodblock textile stamps, and the colour in the illustrations is misaligned to replicate the effect of Indian textiles.
All classic Karkli flavours, plus a special edition collaboration with Weird Beard Brew Co.
The packaging
Starting small
Being a small independent business, the budget for printed pieces was a significant consideration so we opted for printed labels to add to ziplock pouches for the packaging.
The designs for each flavour differ by colour, adding an accent on the “i”, slight variation of the illustrated banner feature, and featuring a different member from the founder’s family on the back, reminding us of what a family heirloom the recipe for these really is.
The outcome
Dreaming big!
Karkli was a common stand at craft beer markets and ultimately sold in multiple cafes, pubs and breweries across the UK, including the Tate Modern cafe in London.
Karkli at the Tate Modern cafe.
Kumar Kolar
Founder of Karkli
"Lara is an exceptionally talented designer, if you are looking for someone, stop and send Lara a message! She has been an integral part of our team from day one. She helped to create the brand, and the identity. She understood the concept immediately and her communication skills were excellent to make sure we were on the same page throughout the process."
Alex Stevenson
Tate Modern
"Our customers at Tate expect the highest standard of art, we try to keep to this standard with our food and drink offering and Karkli helps us achieve this."
Julie Smith
Fodder of Harrogate
"Karkli looks great on our shelves, and tastes even better, which is why our customers love it."