Industrial design studio Blond has designed a series of striking yet minimalistic refillable packaging pieces for skincare brand Daisyface, creating a product that consumers are proud to have on their beauty shelves.
The brand's founder, Daisy Schaffer, has long been passionate about skincare but struggled to find a line that both she and her sisters could use because, despite being triplets, the sisters all have very different skin types. Schaffer had found that Daisy Oil worked excellently on her own skin and decided to work with a UK lab to uncover the skincare benefits of daisies, which is when she discovered the potent benefits of Daisy Stem Cells.
From helping with pigmentation and sun damage to acne scarring and swelling, daisy stem cells have multiple benefits. Most importantly, they are suitable for all skin types—even sensitive skin! Naturally, this revolutionary product deserved a revolutionary design that could convey the premium ingredients and stand out in a very saturated market.
Blond is no stranger to the FMCG world, particularly the refillable space, and the design team was intrigued by Daisyface's positioning and its desire to target a multi-generational demographic. The studio's founder and creative director, James Melia, says, "We got a sense that Daisy understood the need for refillable, and we also loved her passion.
"We like to see this from clients - the passion they have for the brand and how much they want to succeed - and this is always a big driving factor in choosing who we work with."
Daisyface collaborated with Blond for two years on everything from the initial strategy and research to manufacture. This included engineering a complex mechanism, devising how to make the packaging as sustainable as possible, and finding the best way to communicate the brand vision through a tangible piece of design.
Since the concept of refillables means that the product will be used for a long time, Melia says that the design needs to be "as robust as possible and be as recyclable as possible". Though the aluminium exterior of the Daisyface packaging is very complex, it is also very well engineered, according to Melia, as is the robust plastic interior and magnetic closing. Ultimately, Blond created a packaging solution built to last but one that still upholds the affordable luxury vision of the brand with two levels of packaging.
The "forever vessel" is essentially the primary packaging that consumers will see and touch when using the product. The secondary packaging is perhaps the most innovative aspect of this design and perfectly encapsulates the brand's ethos.
Made from daisy seed paper—chosen to be as sustainable as possible—the secondary packaging can be composted, and daisies will grow from it if watered.
"There are always parts in the process that we don't initially realise are going to be a challenge," says Melia. He explains that while the team anticipated that the airless pump was going to be "a tricky mechanism to develop, as well as do uniquely", many months were spent with the manufacturing partners to make it work,
However, according to Melia, there were some unforeseen challenges when it came to ensuring that colours worked together and were consistent, but the process was enjoyable nonetheless.
The overall aesthetic of Daisyface was defined in the research and strategy phase. Since Daisy owns the brand and the product is made from daisies, it felt appropriate to go with a shape inspired by the flower. Rather than just replicating a daisy, Blond went through several iterations of different shapes and reduced them down until they landed on the chosen design.
"We used this idea to develop a story around the way the product worked, so the actual rotation of the device itself always lands back on the petal perfectly," says Melia. He adds that the petal shape also means that you can stack the vessels to create an incredible and decorative feature in the home.
"We know that people increasingly have products on show in their bathroom and dressing room, so this was a consideration throughout the project."
