Garage Beer Barely Hides the Hugeness of Their Growing Empire with ‘Little Beer That Could’ Branding
July 18th, 2024 | Sarah Fonder | The Dieline
ARTICLE EXCERPT (Link to full article below):
Garage Beer used to be a craft brewery content to play regionals, but thanks to some smart branding and high-profile investors like Travis and Jason Kelce, they’re gunning for nationals now. Last fall, Forbes’ Jeanette Hurt reported that this once-local brand has become the fastest-growing beer in the country, and its shiny, professional look by Creature Theory feels pretty far removed from its DIY origins.
The boxes and cans lean into an all-American look with low-key color palettes, a straightforward illustration of its basketball-hooped namesake, and a sleek script logo that looks straight out of an auto shop. It’s a classic “beer for the average Joe” kind of look that makes immediate sense in a grocery store aisle, but knowing the brand’s smaller-time origins adds a bit of intrigue to Creature Theory’s work. While a person who’d never heard about the brand before likely wouldn’t feel any pull towards reading between the lines of the design, there’s something intriguingly ironic about a rapidly expanding “little beer that could” using such modest imagery for wide release.
In their case study, Creature Theory mentions aiming for as simple and unpretentious a feel as they could, and they hit the target with a heavy emphasis on “ordinary moments of life that join us together,” calling the brand “the proud champion of stories of mere mortals.” The knowledge that this once-modest brand is skyrocketing in value adds a bit of a “trust fund kid in a coveralls” feel to Garage Beer’s no-nonsense imagery and copy. This isn’t a big brand; it’s a regular brand for people just like you!
It’s a classic tactic, and Creature Theory isn’t shy about it working: “Simple is where it’s at,” their case study continues. “And it just so happens to sell beer as fast as [it’s] stocked.”
And that is interesting because it is simple, but in the same way Coors or Budweiser is simple: not fussy-looking, but sleek and organized, the kind of beer a large company might try to convince workers is worth the money HR could’ve applied towards a dental plan. With the brand’s rapid expansion, it sounds like Garage Beer is definitely appealing to the average Joe, but it feels fair to say there’s no mistaking their team for peers.
That doesn’t even touch on the star factor of new co-owners Travis and Jason Kelce, the former of whom has spent the past half-year or so as something resembling America’s king of the prom. Beyond being a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs and the boyfriend of juggernaut billionaire songwriter Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce’s whole appeal seems to be that he looks like a guy many people could imagine as a high school classmate. He has an uncomplicated, all-American energy that seems familiar in the abstract, but of course, he’s nothing like the average Joe, which makes him a pitch-perfect face for a brand like Garage Beer.
Garage Beer Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce: Image from Adam Schefter from the platform X and reported/reposted by Bleacher Report
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Link to full Article about Garage Beer Branding:
https://thedieline.com/garage-beer-barely-hides-the-hugeness-of-their-growing-empire-with-little-beer-that-could-branding/
About Creature Theory
Creature Theory is a creative agency located in the Cargo District of Wilmington, NC. Founded in 2017, Creature Theory provides diverse strategy, design and advertising services to help develop, evolve and grow brands.
The Creature Theory team has decades of experience working with start-ups, growth companies and global brands. Their client list includes some of the United States’ best-known and fastest-growing consumer brands. Visit www.creaturetheory.com for more information.
