The Challenge
Ginologist is one of South Africa’s premier craft gin distilleries, known for their scientific approach and premium packaging. The brief was to move away from a standard template feel and create a digital presence that was “simplistic yet loud.” The challenge was to balance the need for a clean, conversion-focused e-commerce layout with a bold, high-end brand personality.
Visual Strategy & Execution
Since the physical product is the hero of the brand, I adopted a product-centric design strategy.
- Immersive Art Direction: I designed the UI to act as a gallery frame for the product. By utilising high-contrast backgrounds and “hero-centric” layouts, I put the bottles front and center, allowing the intricate label designs to pop.
- Typography as Identity: To match the “loud” aspect of the brief without cluttering the interface, I utilised an elegant, high-impact typeface hierarchy. This allowed for bold messaging that felt sophisticated rather than chaotic.
- E-Commerce UX: Designed the Home Page and Single Product Page (SPP) concepts to ensure that while the site looked editorial, the path to purchase remained intuitive and frictionless.
Outcome
Note: This project was executed during a freelance engagement and concluded at the concept/pitch phase due to a change in the client’s agency partnership. It serves here as a demonstration of visual design capability and brand translation.
Concept Deliverables: Produced high-fidelity “Look & Feel” mockups for the core user journey.
