Zack’s Mighty

Start-Ups and Small BusinessesDesign FirmsBrand Strategy
Written By Rachel Crawford

Zack’s Mighty is a new organic tortilla chip company using regenerative agriculture to revive lost varietals of heritage corn. 

A Zack’s Mighty tortilla chip bag on a bright blue background. The bag says “Made with Heirloom Flint Corn” and shows Otto, the mascot, who is a cartoon ear of corn lifting weights.

The classic-yet-fun brand identity comes through in the chip packaging, which the founder wanted to “win on the brand being fun and the chip being sturdy.”

The founder of Zack’s Mighty (....Zack) came to us with a lot of irons in the fire. He had been working diligently on his idea for a sturdier tortilla chip — one that would hold up to even the thickest guacamole. He had farmers on board to plant the heritage corn varietal that used to be common in the Northeast. And he had just secured a big meeting with Whole Foods.

But he needed brand strategy so he could create the brand identity and sample product packaging in time to wow the buyers. With very little time to bring his vision to life, we started to work together. First, we collaborated on the initial brand strategy and positioning. Then we oversaw the development of the visual brand identity and initial package design.

Working under aggressive time constraints, we:

  • conducted background research,

  • reviewed the competitive landscape,

  • facilitated a collaborative workshop,

  • defined the target audiences,

  • prioritized the key messages, and

  • crafted the new brand’s positioning statement, brand attributes, and “manifesto.”

With the new brand strategy in hand, we then conducted a search for the right creative team to design the logo and packaging. We brought in L+L Studio, a women-led design company in Brooklyn, to create the visual brand. With help from some Speedy Romeo's pizza and studio dog Frannie, we managed the design process and wrote draft brand copy.

The identity, custom illustrations, and packaging design created by L+L helped secure an exclusive global launch at Whole Foods.

Learn more about our work with start-ups >

A competitor 2x2 grid showing Zack’s Mighty in the corner labeled “Sturdy” and Honest”. Other brands represented include Late July, Paqui, Frontera, and Vista Hermosa.
A slide listing key messages for Zack’s Mighty about how they’re made, brand qualities, and product claims and certifications.
A slide outlining messages that are important to key audiences including natural channel buyers, organic moms, food journalists, and tortilla chip lovers.
A slide we used to identify Zack’s Mighty’s brand attributes where he selected between two ends of a spectrum. For example, Folksy vs. Elegant, and Classic vs. Contemporary.

A sampling of slides from our collaborative brand strategy workshop with the founder of Zack’s Mighty.

Some of the original packaging concepts created by L+L

Some of the original packaging concepts created by L+L

Custom corn illustrations created by L+L for the original packaging design

Custom corn illustrations created by L+L for the original packaging design

SERVICES

  • Competitive review

  • Interactive workshop

  • Audience definition

  • Brand strategy

  • Positioning

  • Creative Brief

  • Designer selection

  • Project management

  • Copywriting

COLLABORATORS

L+L

Rachel Crawford
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