100% ORANGE

Tropicana had their agency do a re-design of the Tropicana packaging visual identity last year. Should we get excited about this new design? No, no we should not. Just because a design is new doesn't necessarily make it good. That is the case for Tropicana's new look. And this is why:
• The biggest problem is that the Tropicana brand name on the front of the carton is reduced in size and becomes an equal or subordinate element in the design. The "100% orange" becomes the focal point due to its heavy weight, large scale, and centered location.
• Ease of use was thrown out the window. Tropicana makes many types of OJ... pulp, no pulp, some pulp, calcium, heart healthy, etc. Therefore, they need to make sure the consumer can scan across the shelf and easily pick out their choice. "Pulp Free" is nearly hidden by being placed over a background of a similar colour orange. And moreover, why is that the only element that is capitalized in title case?? Everything else is lowercase.
• Typeface. Yes, we know sans serif typefaces are all the rage -- they're modern, clean and liked. Choosing a sans serif typeface just for the sake of having a sans serif is, however, not liked. There is no balance here; the various weights do not complement one another and, quite frankly, the bottom details look really cheap.
• Also reinforcing this meretricious look is the way the layout resembles a generic store-brand juice. The carefree way the type is thrown together underscores this problem.
• The glass of orange juice is all wrong. I do concede, the idea of using a close-up in an almost abstract way is okay. It could work. Just not here. The Tropicana brand is recognized for the iconic straw-in-orange icon. That image tells me quickly and easily that yes, this juice is damn fresh. An unimpressive glass of orange something (Tang?) is too direct and doesn't even look very quenching.
• The GOOD: the only salvageable element in this re-design is the nice touch of the leaves adjacent to the cap so as to resemble an orange. Cute.

We're glad that Tropicana decided to revert back to the old packaging. While it could stand an update, such an update must be thought through beforehand and not after in an absurd justification document that compares the product to the Mona Lisa, Da Vinci, the universe, and... oh wait, that was Pepsi. (See here for the Pepsi post-design justification of brilliance document: PDF here)

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EDIT:

Published: April 02, 2009

NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- Tropicana's rebranding debacle did more than create a customer-relations fiasco. It hit the brand in the wallet.

The new Tropicana Pure Premium packaging (right) had been on the market less than two months before the company scrapped the redesign.

After its package redesign, sales of the Tropicana Pure Premium line plummeted 20% between Jan. 1 and Feb. 22, costing the brand tens of millions of dollars. On Feb. 23, the company announced it would bow to consumer demand and scrap the new packaging, designed by Peter Arnell. It had been on the market less than two months.