Behind VALA's Branding
When I had the lightbulb moment for VALA way back in 2017, I knew that I wanted to create an energy gel that tasted and looked like no other - and that meant our branding too.
With over a decade of experience working for luxury fashion and beauty brands like NET-A-PORTER, The White Company, Reiss and Burberry, design and branding has been a passion of mine for most of my life.
But when I scoured the internet and sports shops for a natural energy gel for my partner Dann to take during his marathon training, I felt… uninspired.
By the ingredients, the names and the branding of the gels on offer. I couldn’t help but crave a gel that looked as good as it tasted (it’s the graphic designer in me 😂) and this niggle stuck with me for months.
During lunch breaks in my corporate job, I started dreaming up a minimal sports nutrition brand that had a name that wasn’t “sporty” or “foody”… I wanted someone to look at our logo and be intrigued, which is why I chose VALA.
The branding HAD to appeal to the millennials I knew, be timeless yet contemporary and most importantly gender neutral.
I knew that the logo had to look as good on a gel as it did a hat, a bag or a pair of socks. The inspiration for this was the big rebrands that a lot of fashion houses were doing at the time - think Burberry, Saint Laurent and Celine.
Merging this left of centre approach with a passion for creating a natural gel proved to be truly life changing.
It still makes me smile when a customer comments on how much they love our branding.
I’m so glad I listened to my intuitive nudges to go against the grain and create something wildly different to what was in the market. And I’ve realised just how many others were looking for a natural gel like VALA to fuel them up.
With a few happy accidents along the way (our signature VALA green was intended to be sage green but the printing turned out bright green as we printed on top of white), I realise just how important the power of branding is.
Maybe it’s what caught your eye when scrolling your feed or flicking through a magazine that VALA was featured in.
I’d love to know what inspired you to try out VALA gels. Let me know!
With over a decade of experience working for luxury fashion and beauty brands like NET-A-PORTER, The White Company, Reiss and Burberry, design and branding has been a passion of mine for most of my life.
But when I scoured the internet and sports shops for a natural energy gel for my partner Dann to take during his marathon training, I felt… uninspired.
By the ingredients, the names and the branding of the gels on offer. I couldn’t help but crave a gel that looked as good as it tasted (it’s the graphic designer in me 😂) and this niggle stuck with me for months.
During lunch breaks in my corporate job, I started dreaming up a minimal sports nutrition brand that had a name that wasn’t “sporty” or “foody”… I wanted someone to look at our logo and be intrigued, which is why I chose VALA.
The branding HAD to appeal to the millennials I knew, be timeless yet contemporary and most importantly gender neutral.
I knew that the logo had to look as good on a gel as it did a hat, a bag or a pair of socks. The inspiration for this was the big rebrands that a lot of fashion houses were doing at the time - think Burberry, Saint Laurent and Celine.
Merging this left of centre approach with a passion for creating a natural gel proved to be truly life changing.
It still makes me smile when a customer comments on how much they love our branding.
I’m so glad I listened to my intuitive nudges to go against the grain and create something wildly different to what was in the market. And I’ve realised just how many others were looking for a natural gel like VALA to fuel them up.
With a few happy accidents along the way (our signature VALA green was intended to be sage green but the printing turned out bright green as we printed on top of white), I realise just how important the power of branding is.
Maybe it’s what caught your eye when scrolling your feed or flicking through a magazine that VALA was featured in.
I’d love to know what inspired you to try out VALA gels. Let me know!