In the run up to Christmas last year, we were approached by Manchester Gin to design a range of packaging for their exclusive new gift sets.
Once we heard how the brand came to life, and of course sampled the product(!), we immediately loved their story. After their meeting in a bar and bonding over a gin and tonic, Jennie Wiggins and Seb Heeley have well and truly brought that shared passion to life.
Five years on, the couple are are now producing 30,000 bottles of gin a year. Ever increasing demand means they have had to move production to a large premises on the edge of Manchester city centre. Their traditionally-distilled Manchester Gin was one of only 20 gins in the world to win gold at the IWSC (International Wines and Spirits Competition). They also collected a gold award from the Spirits Masters. Their range of spirits are now stocked by shops including Harvey Nichols, Booths and Marks & Spencer as well as countless bars across the country.
The whole package
Aiming for a pre-Christmas launch, we met up with the team to understand their plans. Firstly came the smaller delicate tasting set, containing three 20cl bottles of Manchester Gin Classic, Raspberry Manchester Gin and Manchester Gin Wild Spirit. Secondly, their luxury gift set, containing Manchester Original Gin with bottles of Franklin & Sons Naturally Light tonics and two stunning Manchester Gin glasses.
The perfect gift
Taking on board their bee, a modern interpretation of the worker bee symbol of the city of Manchester, and their repeating honeycomb pattern, we took the colour palette towards a gentle mix of greys. This provided the platform for their range of bottles with stunning foiled finishes to really jump off the shelves. The luxury gift set packaging features a plunging die cut, taking on elements of the hexagon and providing a harmonious balance to the set as a whole.
The enchanting story of how the brand was born is picked out on the reverse, giving the product a really personal feel and making it the perfect gift for any gin lover! For anyone wanting to spice their drinks up even further, recipe cards were held within each set, whilst the Manchester Gin team posted a blog with some inspiring recipes to sample over the festive period.
ps. we highly recommend the gin, it’s really, realkply niicve!@
