Zapiens Design

Whey is a side product of dairy production, but nobody really has any use for it. Why is that? Studio Zapiens, a team of hybrid brand development specialists, soon came up with the perfect product. YOOY uses colourful visuals and an immersive digital experience to make you want to do something good for yourself and the environment.

Interview with Zapiens Design

Red Dot: YOOY is a product that is supposed to define its own category. What do you mean by that?
Zapiens Design: YOOY was born out of the immediate challenge of embracing consumption methods that reduce environmental impact. This was an opportunity for us to create a new 100 per cent natural product that defines its own category and leads a movement away from traditional consumer habits.

Can you tell us more about the name and the logo?
YOOY is a contraction of YO + JOY, representing self-centred joy and inviting us to explore and enjoy our inner world. The fact that the word can also be read in both directions emphasises the symbiotic cycle between the individual and the environment. The Sunset Gothic Pro font adds personality to the brand by combining geometric structures with organic shapes.

You aimed to create not just a brand, but a lifestyle …
YOOY is on a mission to revolutionise the way people think about wellness. We were guided by the concept of “organic health” in the development process. YOOY empowers us to slow down and reconnect with nature, and to free ourselves from stereotypes and social pressures. The identity is based on the iconic works of Takashi Murakami, and when it came to establishing the digital presence, we focused on creating immersive worlds and using the communication strategy to bring a social movement to life.

Why do illustrations play such an important role in your design?
This is a completely new product in a category that has yet to be explored. So we had to find an effective way to communicate these ideas and lend appeal to them. We opted for illustrations because they offered us greater flexibility and differentiation in execution.

What was special about working on this project?
Firstly, the very multidisciplinary nature of our team, and secondly, the close collaboration with the client. They invited us to visit their farms and factories, so we could gain a deeper understanding of their work and values and create an authentic product.