MATUA WINES
Lands & Legends

PROJECT SCOPE

Tier Naming
Brand Identity
Packaging
Art Direction
Website

AWARDS

NZ Best Awards - Finalist

As part of a rebrand to strengthen and simplify the offering of Matua products, a number of tiers were removed and the Lands and Legends range was positioned as a new, accessible luxury range at a mid range price point. The brief was to create an authentic, premium range with real heritage.

In a saturated wine market the Lands and Legends range needed to first and foremost feel like an elevated extension of the Matua family, work hard on shelf and communicate an authenticity specific to New Zealand.

Our idea was to bring Maori legends specific to each wine growing region to life with a mandala-esque illustration that envelops the Matua brand; HAWKE’S BAY - The Fish of Maui, MARLBOROUGH - Kupe and The Octopus, and CENTRAL OTAGO - Matakauri and The Giant.

We explored how to distill each legend down to its essence while maintaining a respectable amount of detail to communicate the rich level of storytelling required for each label to feel authentic. We used key symbols that could be repeated across each of the labels unifying them as a set. Swirling waves, splayed hands and grasping tentacles were illustrated in house, bring about a sublime and melodramatic quality to the deceptively pared down vignettes. It is this drama mixed with clean, clear restraint, that makes for a contemporary, premium and moreover authentic narrative that is a perfect fit for Matua’s core brand messaging; ‘made with real New Zealand’.