2016 Winners & Shortlists

Brief Explanation

Holw El Sham is one of the leading sweets manufacturers in Egypt for the past 20 years. They are one of the most popular ‘sweets’ manufactures in Egypt and specifically have developed the sweets of the Molid el Naby across the years. They have a huge plant, which allows them to manufacture the big quantities for any occasion in just couple of weeks prior to the occasion/celebration hence ensuring that there sweets are fresh. The popular consumer base for this brand is C+ class across Egypt.

The Brief

The Prophet’s birthday is something big in the Middle East. It is steeped in tradition. One of these traditions is giving sweets. While the brand is known to be a producer of the ‘prophet Mohamed’s’ sweet historically no one in the industry has claimed it. The client wanted to own this category this year and create an immediate emotional bond between the brand and the consumers noting that this category lacked innovation and already was not appealing to the younger generations. The objective was to appeal to the younger generations while not alienating the older generation and generate sales.

How the final design was conceived

Not only did the product speak for itself we decided to create an iconic logo for this occasion called ‘the market of sweets” with a very unique type. The typography created for the logo was inspired by the carnival or ‘molid’ signage from past history. These carnivals are usually held all over Egypt in rural areas and accordingly we were inspired to create a type that is more folklore or ‘shaby’ as is called in Egypt. We again tried to balance between the modern and traditional by creating a bold type that entails the ‘shaby’ character with a true essence of the carnival feel. The typography coupled with the oriental carnival feel in the logo made for a sweet iconic look for the product.

Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market

The typography gives the logo the needed feel which is oriental with a modern touch to make link between old era and modern era without losing the Arabic eastern identity & culture. It gives a great appeal to the logo that makes it stands out for the consumer, a design that capturing the eye in a trial to discover it by asking your self '' Is it an old design or a modern one?'' complemented with elements from old Egyptian folklore. It also uplifts the brand identity because it grab the B class not only our target which is C class. (The results were staggering, the client doubled last year's sales reaching 9 millions EGP in less than a month!)