Beer Can Appreciation Day is a thing.
In what could be akin to water torture for anyone in the final throes of Dry January, clever marketeers are encouraging us to look beyond the contents and admire the artistry that takes can from shelf to fridge, or fridge to glass.
For Grimsby-based designer SourceFour, a full service agency established 16 years ago by Robert Pritchard, the arrival of a brewery in the town with bold ambitions and ideas to build on the maritime heritage was manna from heaven.
It won a pitch for the work of Docks Beers more than 18 months ago, and neither have looked back – with a core range of cans, special editions and collaborations rolling out of ‘The Church’ brewery on King Edward Street, wrapped in the handiwork of the seven-strong team.
“It took some fighting to get, but it has paid off, and we’re the designer of choice now,” Mr Pritchard said.
The work has been likened to that of American graphic novelist Frank MIller of Bat Man and Sin City fame, with each can combining striking imagery, the legally-binding essentials and a town landmark.
“The whole team gels together, and ideas bounce between and it serves us all well,” he said. “We always try to do something different, and Docks seem to want to do that also, and for us it is great when they want to break the mould. In such a crowded market it’s important for your cans to be unique and stand out on the shelf.”
From the core range of the first three canned beers, Pritchard’s team has gone on to design a fully functional E-commerce website and delivery van wrap, with pump clips and now an events venue thrown in for good measure.
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“It is something we’ve really embraced as an agency, it is a great team and we always try to go again and do better,” he added.
The client is no less delighted with the arrangement, with a merchandise range expanding like the brewery is.
Will Douglas, director at Docks, said: “There are no two ways about it. SourceFour, with the artwork provided, has been a fundamental ingredient to the success of the first 18 months of the business. They responded like a dream to the brief we gave, with impactful design that really represents the hard work ethic of dockers, providing a feeling of what the docks are all about.”
So why January 24? Apparently it recognises the first day beer was canned, in 1935, in the US, and within years millions of cans of beer were being shipped to soldiers overseas during World War Two.
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