Featured image for 10 Creative Standouts From Expo East 2022

10 Creative Standouts From Expo East 2022

by Fred Hart on 10/05/2022 | 4 Minute Read

The natural products industry reconvened in Philadelphia this past week to sip on non-milks, nosh on upcycled foods, and gorge ourselves on green soup for ExpoEast.

While plant-based meat brands no longer numbered in the 100s, design of all stripes and food categories went hard, as companies continue to wield their power to tell their stories and connect with consumers. Here’s our roundup of the most deliciously designed brands at the show. 

Editorial photograph

I Eat My Greens

One part vintage boxing posters and one part farm stand, I Eat My Greens brings a fresh vibe and aesthetic to the soup aisle. Between the green brand color, alluring ingredient illustrations, and unique paper label that sits over the top of the plastic bag, the overall packaging pops in a multitude of ways that are both crafty and premium at the same time. Now that's a design that’s ripe for the picking.

Editorial photograph

Gen Z Water

The brand name says it all—but it also says so much more. Few brands employ such a keen sense of self and humor simultaneously, and the graphics aptly throw it back to the 90s, Web 1.0, and Clipart. The visually pleasing tongue-in-cheek approach is both surface and deep, a dichotomy separating those in the know and out-of-the-loop. Whatever your stance, there’s nothing like it. And for that, we salute you, Gen Z Water.

Editorial photograph

Painterland Sisters

Real food from real family farms—and real sisters! With a backstory as wholesome as this, it’s no surprise that the look and feel followed suit. A warm cream creates continuity across the line while simple, humble, and bohemian illustrations pair with hand-inspired typography. In the end, it's food that feels like family.

Editorial photograph

Bored Cow

Animal-free milk. That’s right, diary without the cow. Through a unique fermentation process, they’ve made products identical to dairy—which as a result, has given a lot of time back to the cows. So now they’re exploring space, skateboarding, and a whole host of other hobbies. Rendered in a cartoony, illustrative style, the brand is fun, friendly, and kid-approved. 

Editorial photograph

Perfy

Welcome to the land of Perfy, where flavor is as abundant as the company's NFTs. This Web3-based brand opts for flavorful illustrations to deliver its adaptogenic and nootropic soda. Digitally, the brand comes filled with characters and whimsy that depict a happy world that’s, well, Perfy. 

Editorial photograph

Sticky Fingers

Talk about a brand name (Editor’s Note: and is it a reference to the best Stones album?). This DC-based bakery has launched its delicious baked treats into retail with some abstract and Avante-Garde packaging. The brand name is whimsical, while the design is divided into compartments, showing off the product in one area and patterns in another. It’s as unexpected as it is tasty. 

Editorial photograph

Tamatea

It’s been quite the glow-up for this upstart brand. They traded in conventional ingredient illustrations for a much more confident and color-focused design system that highlights flavor, tea type, and benefits through a composition of arched typography. Pinkies up with this fancy can. 

Editorial photograph

Petit Pot

This little pot is doing some big design things. While maintaining all recognition, the brand received a delicious update, refining the brand character and adopting a new script wordmark with cute “et” ligature. They even swapped out conventional food photography for artistic flavor illustrations. As the little french pot character would say, “C'est magnifique!”

Editorial photograph

Matriark

Upcycled ingredients, limiting food waste, more sustainable packaging, lower carbon footprint—it’s all conveniently delivered in a delicious little box of pasta sauce with out-of-this-world flavor. While the brand mark is tall, condensed, and serious with angled letterforms, the collage-like illustrations and accompanying communication typefaces provide a moment of softness for the hard-fought mission-led brand.

Editorial photograph
Editorial photograph

Smootch  

Smootch is out to redefine hydration—powered by regenerative oats with sustainability as a core component of their brand. The overall look is clean and simple, with a vertical wordmark and ingredient illustrations down at the base, with a metallic finish adding a premium touch. Overall, a good start for an innovative brand, with plenty of room to grow like their farmers' oats.