Springhead, one of Nottinghamshire’s leading micro breweries is delighted to unveil the results of an exciting rebranding project in support of its sales and marketing strategy.

Manchester–based design agency, CreationADM was chosen to fulfil the rebranding brief in line with Springhead’s marketing plan. CreationADM’s task was to create a consistent, yet innovative design for the Springhead brand for use across a suite of sales and marketing materials, drawn from a set of practical requirements.

The original brand theme was based on the English Civil Wars, but Springhead was concerned that the theme did not resonate strongly enough with its all of the individual consumer market. It is proud of the Newark heritage in the Civil Wars and wished to retain the link via the names but with a modern interpretation. Roaring Meg’s well developed image was undeniable; it is the most popular cask ale and has achieved national and regional listings in a most of the supermarkets in its bottled format. As a result of this Springhead decided it was keen to capitalize on Roaring Meg’s successful imagery and not veer too far away from the original concept.

The rationale behind the new branding concept is based upon the following requirements from the brewery:

Brand identity

Micro breweries often risk being known by an “icon” beer – where one of their beers, usually the producer’s most popular, eclipses the brand itself. Springhead needed to ensure this was not going to occur with its most popular beer – Roaring Meg. Therefore the re-brand had to ensure that the Springhead “brand” was more prominent than its individual beers if it was to stand up to its competitors.

Local brewery – national brand

It is Springhead’s aim to ensure national reach without compromising on the quality and personal customer service associated with being a micro brewer and without alienating their core market of drinkers who enjoyed the authenticity which first attracted them to the brand.

Target market

Probably the most significant change in Springhead’s marketing strategy for 2009/2010 is the broadening of its consumer target market. Springhead is aware that there is a burgeoning notion that the “typical” beer drinker as a 45 year old male is an outdated concept and that aspirational 20–30+ year olds, both male and female, are increasingly being drawn to artisanal style beers as part of a fashionable lifestyle choice. On the flipside, however, older male drinkers sometimes retreat back to kegged beers when faced with making multiple choices each time they order. It was essential, therefore, that the new design would be inspirational to a new generation of drinkers whilst re-assuring their current market and the older and more wary consumer.

Getting the message across

The primary source of visibility of the new branding will be on pump clips and bottle labels so it was vital that the new brand identity could be conveyed clearly in this medium. CreationADM has successfully delivered this by developing a template for Springhead so that each individual beer is easily recognisable either at the bar or on the shelf as being part of the same family. One of Springhead’s key requirements for the labelling was for the design to include “layman’s” tasting notes on the front of the pumpclips to entice the curious drinker and assist them in making an informed choice, with the desired outcome being a satisfied customer. The branding also had to be versatile enough to apply to sales and marketing collateral such as delivery fleet signage, leaflets, beer mats, glassware, and bar runners as well as promotional materials such as t-shirts and polo shirts. It will also be a driving feature on the company’s new website which is currently in development. Ultimately Springhead wanted a design that would be consistent with and echo the qualities associated with the larger regional brewers whilst retaining the positive image that consumers associate with small scale producers.

CreationADM

Gary Young of CreationADM who worked on the rebranding says: “Our brief was to develop the imagery and positioning of Springhead Brewery to make it more appealing to a younger, more discerning beer consumer. We had identified the origins of something really special in the Roaring Meg branding, so we simply took what was great about the identity and applied the same principles to the complete range. What we feel we have delivered for Springhead Brewery is a contemporary, modern identity that is fresh on the eye and a real reflection of what the brewery stands for: A modern, relevant brewer that retains its traditional values and skills whilst genuinely offering a product and an image that the younger, more discriminating consumer has been waiting for.”

The future

The rebranding project was part of a larger scale investment by the brewery, with partial investment from Business Link. Springhead has recently appointed Phil Owen, previously of Greene King, to head up the company’s sales strategy which, combined with the new branding, Helen Teasdale, Springhead’s boss hopes will take the company from strength to strength. Helen has commented; “I am delighted with the interpretation of the brief by CreationADM and looking forward to rolling it out across our range of

products and introducing it to our customers. The whole brewing team is very excited at the prospect of a new chapter in the Springhead story.”

Springhead bottled beers are available in Morrison’s nationally and regionally in Waitrose, The Co-op, Asda, Majestic, and Tesco’s supermarkets and in casks in Wetherspoons and most good cask ale pubs across the country.

For further information or sales enquiries please call Springhead Brewery on 01636 821 000.