Sage Matcha
“Ancient wisdom made modern.” As a matcha enthusiast, Larry wanted to modernize traditional tea ceremonies by making it more convenient for busy lives to integrate the health benefits of matcha into their daily routines, promoting clearer focus and overall well-being.
The process
Ideation
Knowing that a branding guide and logo had already been established for Sage Matcha, Larry and I began our research by focusing on trendy, earthy packaging that would complement the assets that we’d be working with. Since Larry also wanted his product to feel more “premium” than other offerings, we also looked at makeup packaging to brainstorm how we could create a luxurious, clean design.
Different art directions
As Larry’s vision for Sage Matcha continued to evolve overtime, so did our designs. After exploring options with the original green/gold colorway and brand assets (as well as exploring the possibility of printing the pouches on kraft paper), we ended up using the light cream from the color palette as the main color swatch to provide a stronger contrast for the product’s copy.
Finalizing the templates
Working within the technical guidelines provided by Larry’s co-packer, I built out the files for the pouch and sachet templates. When the provided barcodes ended up being much larger than we had anticipated, I made some last-minute adjustments to the layout to not only maintain the integrity of our original design, but also ensure that there was enough room to keep each blend’s individual information intact.
To the shelves!
Sage Matcha officially launched their e-commerce website in December 2024 and has made a name for itself at multiple NYC pop-up events, including the Holiday Ouri Market and NYC’s Pop-Up Grocer. True to the brand’s organic roots, Sage Matcha’s popularity is continuing to grow through word-of-mouth. Our packaging design contributes to this by not only capturing customers’ attention on the shelves, but encouraging further brand engagement through social media stories and posts.
Client testimonial
[Erika's] creativity, flexibility, and attention to detail were invaluable throughout the process, and I especially appreciated the vision boards and regular updates she provided. Her willingness to adapt to my changing schedule and incorporate feedback from my manufacturer was essential to the success of the project, as we worked side-by-side with live updates from the operations-side of things. Most importantly, Erika took in my initial vision and helped me create packaging that was even more unique and impactful than I had originally imagined.”
