Japanese Design Barcode turns standard barcodes into appealing and engaging brand elements.
Following laundry services, supermarkets and coffins in our recurring 'everything can be reinvented' theme, come the humble stripes and digits that shape the ubiquitous barcode, as reinvented by Design Barcode.
Fifteen companies are currently using the agency's novel barcodes as part of their packaging design. (A video showing examples can be viewed here.) The designs are clever and whimsical, from bars being picked up by chopsticks for a ramen noodles package, to a zebra carrying the black and white stripes on its back.
Some designs were commissioned by clients, while others are part of the agency's initial range of 200 designs created to display the format's potential. Exclusive rights to the latter can be bought for USD 4,000 plus a USD 400 annual license fee. The agency prides itself on zero instances of false reading by barcode readers (machine readability is key), and all barcodes are put through a battery of tests before being released for production.
Although Design Barcode has been reworking barcodes since 2004, the idea hadn't yet caught on outside Japan. That's likely to change after the four-man agency won major industry recognition in Cannes last week, in the shape of a Titanium Lion award.
Everything that is packaged reaches customers' hands with a barcode attached. Turning that mandatory element into something unexpected and playful is certain to make many customers smile. Surely that's worth USD 4,000 to most brands. ;-) Design Barcodes is working with Pacarc to bring the concept to the United States, but other markets still seem wide open. One for regional (boutique) design firms and advertising agencies?
Website: http://www.d-barcode.com
Contact: info@d-barcode.com
In the United States:
Website: http://www.barcoderevolution.com
Contact: info@pacarc.com
P.S. If you're interested in functional innovations in product codes, you might want to check out trendwatching.com's infolust, which explores new versions of two-dimensional codes (among other things).
On the cover of Afenginn's new CD, Akrobakkus, they have an even cooler implementation. I'll see if I can find some shots. (Their site is afenginn.dk)
Thanks, Jan! Look forward to seeing it.
Liesbeth
I thought ALDI, who just use the barcode to wrap all around their products like a background image, were doing it different. But here, now that's some real design work.
The thing about a barcode is that for a retailer, they have to quickly be able to identify it and scan it easily, and be able to aim the beam without thinking about it. With some of these (the plate in particular), it's not obvious when doing a quick glance. They may be cute and even scannable, but if the register-monkey has to take 2 minutes per item to find a barcode, customers will not be happy. Think Costco lines.
The Puma shoe boxes have a nice touch where the barcode stripes are like bars and the last few are bent as if the Puma has jumped out of its cage.
Whimsical barcodes are fun, but their use is not allowed in Australia. When my company tried to introduce similar b/c's 10 years ago, we were told "no can do"
These guys are lagging far behind with this idea. They are not even close to turning barcodes into art / brand elements. Compare to: http://www.artlebedev.com/posters/
It's one of the most well known design agencies in russia
Since I couldn't find any high res pics of the abovemention Afenginn CD cover, I've uploaded it to flickr - forgive the quality;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/63684604@N00/sets/72157594202482278/
Hi Jan,
Thanks a lot for taking the trouble! That is indeed a cool example. :-)
Nestlé has been doing this for years. I first saw it back in 1999 when I started working for a packaging company. Though maybe not as whimsical as the designs shown here, Nestlé in Ecuador and Colombia have used this concept for a long time... I don't know if this is a global Nestlé trend, though.
I don't buy it. Barcodes are used in everything from graffiti to tattoos to t-shirts. Want proof? Look here.
he is a
really big mong and he shags bushes
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