Nutty: Plant-Based Milk Brand System
Designing a brand that helps users make quick, confident choices.
Role: Product Designer
Team: 4 Product Designers (with Jessica, Li-Yen and Sophia)
Timeline: Aug 2024 - Dec 2024
At a Glance
Problem
Plant-based milk options can be hard to compare quickly, especially when packaging lacks clear hierarchy.
My Role
I contributed to brand strategy, visual system design, packaging direction, and digital touchpoint design.
Outcome
Created a cohesive brand system across packaging, website, and social media to support quicker, more confident product decisions.
The Problem
Choosing plant-based milk can feel overwhelming at the shelf. Users often face too many similar options, unclear product differences, and limited time to compare ingredients or benefits.
Too many similar options
Plant-based milk products often compete with similar claims and visual styles.
Unclear product differences
Ingredients, benefits, and allergens are not always easy to scan.
Fast point-of-purchase decisions
Users need to make quick choices without reading every detail.
Insights
🧃 Lack of clarity in current packaging
Current products either feel too minimal or too playful, lacking both clarity and trust
ℹ️ Prefer simple information
Clear and scannable information is more important than detailed explanations
💨 Users want quick decisions
Gen Z and Millennials value health and sustainability, but don’t want to spend time comparing products
These insights informed how we approached Nutty’s brand strategy and design system.
To address the challenges identified in our research, we defined Nutty’s brand around three key principles:
Clarity
Make key information easy
to scan at a glance
Approachability
Use friendly visuals
to reduce intimidation
Consistency
Create a cohesive system across all touchpoints
These principles guided our design decisions across all touchpoints.
Each design element was crafted to reflect Nutty’s core principles: clarity, approachability, and consistency.
Mascot / Brand Identity
Making the brand more approachable
We introduced a mascot to create a friendly and memorable identity, helping reduce the intimidation often associated with health-focused products.
The playful character also strengthens emotional connection, especially for younger audiences.
Color System
Using color to simplify decision-making
We designed a color system to differentiate flavors, allowing users to quickly recognize products without reading detailed labels.
Warm tones reinforce the brand’s friendly and energetic personality.
Typography
Balancing personality and readability
We paired a playful display font with a highly readable body font to maintain brand character while ensuring clarity in product information.
Supports quick scanning across packaging and digital touchpoints.
We designed Nutty’s packaging to support fast and confident decision-making in real shopping contexts.
At the shelf, users often scan products quickly rather than reading detailed information. Our goal was to reduce cognitive load and make key information immediately visible.
Highlighting key information
Key details such as ingredients and allergens are clearly emphasized, allowing users to understand the product at a glance.
Color-coded product system
Each flavor is assigned a distinct color, enabling quick recognition without the need to read labels.
Playful yet structured layout
The mascot adds personality, while a clear visual hierarchy ensures the information remains easy to navigate.
User perspective
From a user’s perspective, the design allows them to:
Quickly identify the flavor
Understand key benefits within seconds
Make a confident choice without overthinking
Digital Experience: Extending the brand into digital touchpoints
The digital experience extends Nutty’s brand beyond packaging, providing a structured and accessible way for users to explore products and learn more.
While packaging supports quick decisions, digital touchpoints offer deeper information and engagement.
Providing clarity through structure
The website was designed to present information in a clear and scannable way.
Simple navigation across key pages
Clear hierarchy of product information
Emphasis on transparency (e.g. “3 Simple Ingredients”)
Designing for engagement and quick communication
Social media content was designed to capture attention and reinforce brand tone.
Short, attention-grabbing messaging
Playful and conversational visuals
Clear call-to-action to drive interaction
Together, these touchpoints create a cohesive experience that supports both quick decisions and deeper engagement.
This project shows how I use brand systems to support decision-making, not just visual recognition. By connecting research insights with packaging, website, and social media touchpoints, I focused on making product information easier to scan, compare, and trust.
Key strengths demonstrated
Translating user insights into brand and packaging decisions
Building cohesive systems across physical and digital touchpoints
Designing visual hierarchy to support faster product decisions
