The Approach:

​

"Mild to Wild" — Reimagining Flavour as a Visual Journey.

​

Every great packaging brief comes with its own tension. In this case, it was the push and pull between evolution and disruption. The brand team wanted to explore bold creative territory, yet still needed options that stayed close to home—within the comfort zone of Amstel Malta’s visual identity.

​

However, the hardest part of the brief wasn’t conceptual—it was practical. I was asked to deliver just two options, based on a modest design budget. But from the outset, it was clear that this brief demanded more: more exploration, more storytelling, more imagination. So I made a choice. I set aside the budget constraints and focused on what the brand truly needed to see.

​

The result? A full-spectrum strategy—“Mild to Wild”—that offered not just two ideas, but a complete visual journey from restraint to disruption. The fluid creative spectrum became more than a method—it was a strategic design tool that helped the team visualize risk as a structured journey, rather than a leap of faith.

MILD — The Classics Reinvented

Some of the options had to remain firmly anchored in the brand’s existing guidelines—and for good reason. These “Mild” concepts were crafted for legacy stakeholders and operational feasibility. They featured clean, minimalist layouts, refined barley illustrations, and adhered closely to Amstel Malta’s color system and regulatory placement.

Rather than play it safe, I approached this category with reverence—using subtle shifts in scale, spacing, and texture to inject freshness without compromising familiarity.

These designs weren’t static—they were quietly confident. Perfect for maintaining brand trust while nudging forward.

​MILD TO WILD — Stretching Within the System

In this middle tier, I asked a different question:
How far can we push the brand’s visual language without breaking it?

This led to the creation of concepts that played within Amstel Malta’s visual ecosystem while introducing bolder, symbolic design metaphors:

​

• Star — inspired by the universal draw of celestial bodies. I imagined each can as a twinkling icon, irresistible to the eye and instantly aspirational.

• Circular Beams — rays of energy radiating from the Amstel logo, turning the center of the can into a spotlight moment.

• Malt Bubbles — effervescent, tactile visuals brought to life using Ben-Day dots, a retro printing technique made modern again.

These designs were curated for Gen Z appeal—combining cultural nostalgia, graphic energy, and the kind of visual storytelling made for the scroll-and-swipe generation.

In this space, the brand wasn’t redefined—it was recharged.

​WILD — Let's Get Wild

​Then came the part of the brief every designer dreams of:
A client who said, “Do whatever you want.”

I thought they were a little crazy. I also thought: finally.

The “Wild” category was where the guardrails came off and the creative fire began. I introduced this section of the presentation with a slide titled: “Let’s Get Wild,” and the mood shifted instantly.

​

• Amstel Malta Art Deco — inspired by the post-WWII design movement that reminded people it was okay to seek beauty again. This version featured symmetrical forms, gold sunbursts, and layered geometry—an homage to joy, luxury, and boldness.

• The Big Bang — the crown jewel. A design born from the metaphor of all the universe’s energy compacted into a single point, ready to explode.
  With fragmented shapes, cosmic bursts, and the Amstel logo at the epicenter, this concept was more than a package—it was a visual revolution. We took the rule book… and responsibly trashed it. We do not litter :).

Through “Mild to Wild,” I gave the brand team a roadmap—not just of design possibilities, but of brand behavior. They could now see, test, and feel what safe, stretch, and disruptive options looked like, and choose their future with confidence.