CPG Branding
Brand identity and packaging systems for food, beverage, beauty and supplement brands in the US, UK and Europe.
We design logos, colour systems, typography and the packaging that carries them, built as rules so every new flavour, size or market follows the same brand. The same studio then makes the 3D mockups and launch visuals.
Updated November 2026 · By Mehmet Turan, founder of 35milimetre · Start a branding project
What you get
- A logotype and brand mark, plus secondary marks and icons for small sizes
- A colour system: fixed brand colours and the logic for flavour or range colours
- Typography with a strict type scale, so new SKUs don't drift
- Lockup and layout rules for horizontal, stacked and small uses
- Packaging applications for the first products, print-ready
- A brand guideline document your team, printer and future designers can follow
- Brand-ready visuals: 3D mockups, launch imagery and merchandise applications from the same studio
Who it's for
- Founders launching a consumer brand in beverage, low- and no-alcohol drinks, supplements, personal care or food
- Brands rebuilding an identity from scratch because the first version no longer fits the shelf
- Producers launching a new range or sub-brand next to an existing one
- Brands entering the US, UK or EU that need an identity built for several markets and languages
Probably not a fit: large brand-strategy programmes with consumer research and naming studies. We work from your positioning and help sharpen it; we don't run research panels.
How it works
- Brief and shelf. What the brand must feel like, what it must not look like, and the shelf it has to stand out on. A brief built on rejections is as useful as one built on references.
- Identity directions. Usually three logotype directions, each a different answer to the same brief.
- Refine and combine. Clients often pick one route and borrow from another; for Braveheart we merged the chosen logotype with the edgier type of a second route.
- Build the system. Colour logic, type scale, lockups and secondary marks, documented as rules rather than one-off designs.
- Apply it to packaging. The first SKUs are designed inside the system and handed over print-ready.
- Guidelines and rollout. A guideline your team can use, plus mockups, launch visuals and merchandise.
Typical timing: for CREED, the first production-ready can took 4 to 6 days and the full visual system and guideline another 6 to 8.
How pricing works
Every project gets a flat fee, agreed after a short call about your brand, range and markets. No hourly billing.
What shapes the quote: the number of identity directions, how far the system has to go (logo only, full identity, or identity plus packaging), the number of SKUs, the depth of the guideline, and whether you need launch visuals and merchandise.
We invoice in USD, EUR or GBP. New clients pay 70% upfront and returning clients 50%, with the balance due on delivery of the final files.
Selected branding work
CREED: from one can to a full visual system. A request to redesign one nicotine pouch can grew into an identity: a directional arrow mark on a fixed angle system, a 61 mm circular layout every can shares, colour intensity tied to nicotine strength, two typefaces with a strict scale, finish rules, and a 15–20 page guideline that carries into jackets, socks and caps. Read the case study
Braveheart: a sake brand between tradition and rebellion. For Shin Koji's low-ABV sake RTD we explored three logotype directions, then built a whale mark with the shinpaku rice grain in its body, a secondary Shinpaku icon and four colourways before moving to the cans. Read the case study
Societea to MrBlanc: an identity that survived a rename. A trademark conflict in Australia forced a new name three months after delivery. The seven-colour palette, lockup rules and mark logic carried over untouched, because the identity was built as a system rather than around one word. Read the story
Klar: a rebrand for a drink with no shelf yet. A full rebuild for a Hamburg alcoholic sparkling water, from logotype to label. A deliberately misaligned "A" in the wordmark survived every round as a piece of shelf disruption. Read the case study
Studio clients also include Unilever (US and UK), Sony Europe, L'Oréal and Pepsi.
“Loved working with Mehmet and highly recommend. Super high-quality outcome in a record time. He was also very engaged throughout the process and determined to exceed expectations.”
Danielle A., Unilever USA
Systems, not one-off logos
Structure you can defend. We separate structural decisions (grid, colour logic, lockup rules) from surface ones (the treatment of one word). The structure is the asset; the surface is what's at risk.
Built for the next SKU. A fifth flavour or a merch drop should follow the rules, not restart the design.
Built for name risk. In categories like alcohol, low- and no-alcohol and wellness, names collide with trademarks more often than founders expect. A system means a rename doesn't send you back to zero. We are not lawyers, so run a proper trademark search before you commit to a name.
Branding that doesn't look AI-made
"Not AI-looking" now turns up in briefs as a requirement. When a brand needs a handmade feel, we start from physical work: hand-lettering or painting, scanned at high resolution, then retouched to remove dust while keeping the texture that makes it read as made by hand. How we approach handmade branding
Identity and packaging are where judgement matters most, so these are the parts of a brand we don't hand to a generator.
Compared with the alternatives
Large branding agency. Strong on research and strategy for big programmes. Fees and timelines are built for enterprise budgets.
Marketplace freelancer. Fine for a quick logo. Rarely delivers a system, a guideline or packaging that scales across a range.
Logo generator or AI tool. Fast and cheap. Looks like everyone else, with no system behind it.
35milimetre. A small senior studio that designs the identity, the packaging and the 3D and AI visuals, so the brand looks the same on shelf, on screen and in ads.
Can you design our brand identity and our packaging?
Yes. We design the identity system and apply it to your packaging, then produce 3D mockups and launch visuals, so one team owns the brand from logo to shelf.
How many logo directions will we see?
Usually three, each a different answer to the brief. You can pick one or combine elements from several before we build the full system.
What's in the brand guideline?
Logo use and lockups, the colour system, typography and type scale, layout rules for packaging, finish rules for print, and examples of the system applied. CREED's ran to 15–20 pages.
How long does a CPG branding project take?
It depends on scope. As a reference, CREED's first production-ready can took 4 to 6 days and the full visual system and guideline another 6 to 8 days.
What if we have to change our brand name later?
Because we build identities as systems, a rename usually changes only the word. When Societea became MrBlanc, the palette, lockup rules and mark logic carried over untouched.
Do you work with brands in the US, UK and Europe?
Yes. We're based in Istanbul (GMT+3), 2–3 hours ahead of London and 7–8 hours ahead of New York, and we invoice in USD, EUR or GBP.
How is branding priced?
We quote a flat fee after a short call, based on how far the system needs to go, the number of SKUs and the depth of the guideline. We invoice in USD, EUR or GBP.
Can you refresh our existing brand instead of starting over?
Yes. If parts of your current identity work, we keep them and build the missing rules around them. If nothing should carry over, as with Klar, we rebuild from scratch.