- Client:
- Twinings
- What we did:
- Experience Strategy & Ideation, Customer Research & Profiling, Customer Journey Mapping, Retail Flagship Design, Retail Design from boutique to flagship, Communications Design, Digital Interaction, UX & UI, Touchpoint Innovation, UX Design, Digital Tools & Platforms, Brief Development, Digital Content, Motion Graphics, Art Direction, Packaging Design
The challenge
Twinings is a world-renowned purveyor of fine teas, with a history of quality, innovation and provenance passed down the family line - its flagship store is London’s oldest tea shop, originally opened by Thomas Twining in 1706. However, the brand had not yet translated this into a unique experience proposition. Its retail offer was largely transactional and not designed to engage with a new era of tea consumers, looking to brands who can help them learn, immerse themselves and share in their tea experience.
Our approach & solution
To define a vision for a breakthrough experience, we immersed ourselves in the world of Twinings - from a cup of tea shared with Stephen Twining himself, to a lab session with their master blenders, hosting multiple workshops with key stakeholders. We built a detailed and insightful picture of the brand’s past, present and future potential. This led us to make a key strategic shift for the brand and formed the foundation of an experience vision that inspired every aspect of the customer journey.
Key insight: Sensorial stories create longer-lasting memories and meaningful interactions with brand ambassadors and ultimately the brand
As a reimagination of London’s oldest store, the Twinings flagship brand experience is designed to engage with customers’ natural curiosity, with rich, multi-sensory storytelling accessed through interactive touchpoints. We revealed hidden stories from Twinings’ unique journey over the years, focussing not only on their rich heritage, but also on innovation, wellness, lifestyle and ethical sourcing.
Store design, digital content, communications and packaging have been created, and art direction has been redefined to represent the warm, welcoming nature of the brand. Traditional tea-room codes have been pushed aside, with a new Tasting Bar in the basement encouraging sensory exploration with private masterclasses. Whether a tea tourist or tea aficionado, there's something to spark curiosity and delight in every visitor.
Strategic shift: From a historic tea shop to a modern-day, multi-sensory brand storyteller.
Our art direction reinvigorates the brand, emphasising the richness of their products and the welcoming nature of their people.
We created a range of digital content, from atmospheric shots of tea plantations and herb gardens where Twinings source their botanicals, through to animated content for the Moments of Curiosity interactive displays.
