Cascade is Foster’s third-largest beer brand and is brewed in Australia’s oldest brewery at the base of Mount Wellington in Tasmania. The Cascade beer portfolio—made up of two premium beers (lager and light) and three craft beers (blonde, pale ale, and stout)—was fragmented and lacked visual consistency. Cascade’s portfolio volume was also dominated by Cascade Premium Light, which was competing in a declining market. On the whole, Cascade had lost relevance in the competitive premium beer category and needed to redefine itself as a more contemporary, unified brand.
Cascade: Reviving the Tasmanian tiger
Challenge
Landor’s task was to create a new brand positioning and architecture for Cascade, allowing for the development of a clear master brand strategy that would be implemented across the portfolio. The challenge was to give Cascade a contemporary look and feel and to ensure that the brand continued to embody its uniqueness through all touchpoints. From Landor this required a deep understanding of—and passion for—the Cascade brand and premium beer category combined with a highly creative design strategy and execution.
Solution
From the heart of the brand essence—untamed soul—Landor and the Cascade team reclaimed the Tasmanian tiger as the leading icon for the brand. The tiger provided clarity for Cascade and a direction for all aspects of design—bottle and can graphics and structure, secondary packaging, guidelines, and point-of-sale and merchandising collateral. Portfolio alignment was achieved through a master brand approach that created a unified visual identity eliminating the brand’s fragmentation. Landor also used on-premise merchandise to lay the foundation for future brand building. In 2008, the design was recognized with an Australian Packaging Award.
Cascade is transformed into a contemporary brand with a unique style.
The old Cascade lacked relevance to premium beer drinkers.
