The Van Leeuwen Brand Case Study

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There are over 400 ice cream production businesses in the US.

At least 50 of those are in every grocery store freezer across the country, offering pretty much the very same flavors. 

And you’re upset that your market is saturated…..

Think about a pint of Cookies and Cream one time!!! Poor thing is out there fighting for his life. 

Artisanal ice cream brand, Van Leeuwen, is one of the 50+ cartons you might see at your local grocery. 

There’s no salesman waiting for you on aisle 6…

You can’t taste test before you take one home…

They can’t send abandon cart emails after someone puts it back and chooses Tillamook instead…

Van Leeuwen knows that their success depends on standing out in the 5-7 seconds that consumer eyes graze the shelves. 

Procter & Gamble officially calls this the First Moment of Truth (FMOT): "the moment a consumer chooses a product over the other competitors offerings.”

(Save this for when you feel like online business is hard.)

Van Leeuwen’s team knows they aren’t like every other ice cream brand. Just like you and I know WE aren’t like the others, right? 

Knowing this doesn’t matter. It never has.

They needed to find a way to convey their difference - and quick.

So they hired the world famous design agency, Pentagram.

If you wanna go down an absolutely stunning rabbit hole - here’s Pentagram’s portfolio.  

(I don’t have time to pop off about hiring experts to save yourself precious time and, ultimately, money but it’s coming one of these days. Trust.)

Pentagram translated Van Leeuwen’s simple ingredients into a design language that removes almost everything from the carton.

No size 135 font. No cows. No picture of the vanilla beans. We just have to take their word for it? Weird.

The pint is now solid shades with plenty of negative space to convey what makes Van Leeuwen different from the rest: minimal, pure ingredients.

The simplified packaging would look good just about anywhere, but it really shines when put next to it’s competition.

The colors and negative space make consumers’ eyes and brains relax among an otherwise crowded maze of text and pictures and obscure ingredient lists.

I had to go see for myself and I can confirm: Van Leewuen sticks out like a sore thumb.

Since the strategic re-brand in 2017, Van Leeuwen’s profit has increased by more than 50% and is still climbing. 

They literally used the 49 other brands in the same freezer to frame their own. 

Don’t shoot the messenger but… A saturated market can actually be a good thing.

It allows you to see 1000 ways you don’t want to do it. 

It offers you a bigger opportunity to stand out. 

I’ll never look at the ice cream freezer the same. 

I assume it’s just coincidence that Van Leeuwen appears to be the best-seller at my local Whole Foods?

(Yeah right.)

Xo, The Salesgirls