INSIGHT

In Search of the Familiar

Trinity’s deep dive into cannabis beverages and the dispensary environment revealed a consumer shopping experience very different from traditional retail. In this burgeoning “wild west” environment many consumers find themselves far outside their comfort zone, not feeling at ease to even know what to ask. Almost every brand is new, most products require some explanation, and packaging is merchandised behind glass or otherwise out of reach. Browsing is frowned upon by many dispensaries, and budtenders can sometimes feel like they inhabit a different world. We identified that missing from the cannabis “consumables” landscape was an offering that would be easy to understand and fit seamlessly into peoples’ lifestyles.

STRATEGY

Cannabis for All

Trinity developed a brand strategy for CERIA that would achieve the company’s mission to make the magical experience of cannabis accessible to all adults. We shared Villa’s POV that beer is a familiar and beloved part of peoples’ social culture, and identified that the key to making this new hybrid product line accessible and acceptable would be to root it firmly in a beer analog. The strategy would drive positioning, visual and verbal expression of the CERIA brand as a quality beer first, with the infusion of THC an exciting new twist that expands beer’s potential and promise.

This approach would make it easy for consumers to understand and integrate CERIA’s products into their mainstream usage occasions.

We helped CERIA define its portfolio architecture by carving out the company’s beer-specific product line under the CERIA Brewing Company name—to allow room for them to build out future non-beer portfolios within the CERIA masterbrand. We also developed product naming, with the inaugural Belgian-Style White Ale called “Grainwave”—playfully marrying the beer ingredient story with the cannabis experience.

CREATIVE

Tradition, with a Touch of Magic

Trinity designed a timeless identity and look for the CERIA Brewing Co. brand that balances the need to establish trust and understanding with the modern freshness of the cannabis marketplace. The new brand provides consumers with an unmistakable beer analog that they can easily understand and feel comfortable integrating into their lives, with modern takes on traditional elements that deliver on cannabis’ exciting new promise. The presence of beer packaging amidst the chaotic and unfamiliar shelves of the dispensary environment stands out strongly and requires very little explanation.

Trinity’s design is centered around Ceres, ancient goddess of the harvest, who is particularly compelling since she is the guardian of hops, barley and cannabis alike. The goddess portrait is presented in bright yellow-gold—a modern expression of beer’s golden color. She is adorned by a wreath of cannabis leaves and hops to cue the unique ingredient story and celebrate the magical synergy of bringing the two together. That synergy is further realized with the strong CERIA type and serious, trustworthy deep blue brand color counterbalanced with abundant hits of a playful brighter blue and a personal hand-scripted type. The brand identity includes the Latin phrase “Cannabis pro Omnibus” – literally “Cannabis for the people” to express the CERIA brand’s mission and its products’ accessibility to all adults. The new system includes a 4pk carrier (designed to reinforce its appropriateness for social occasions) and a website (designed to reach and educate consumers about CERIA’s quality and cannabis-infusion brewing process). The result is a breakthrough new brand that takes the industry to an entirely new level.