This module was definitely not as strong as I had hoped. My time planning did not go to plan, although it did help me gain a sense of where I should be and motivated me to meet my own deadlines. I regret not doing enough primary research. Working in a bar/restaurant, I have been in contact with the brand ambassadors for Bruichladdich, Botanist and Absolut, yet the people I contacted did not respond. I think that my investigation could have been approved by doing a survey. I had originally planned to, but found it difficult to figure out what information I wanted to receive from the data. Although, I believe my investigation could have been better organised, I am happy with the practical side of my submission. The research that I have done into Cuba, rum and Che Gevara has heavily influenced and re-inforced the branding of my rum. My investigation into branding has also helped me create a brand with depth and substance. I do, however, regret not producing more work for how the brand could be expanded. I would like to have produced more advertisements, packaging and a website. Overall I have enjoyed the investigation and research involved in this module as it will influence a lot of my future work. 

 I had the idea to advertise through a less corporate way by using graffiti art to add the the hand-rendered art style that is currently on the label.

I research graffiti adverts, yet they all seemed very corporate, and clashed with the ideals and themes theatre currently associated with the Santiago brand.

A graffiti style that is incredibly fitting with the politics and rebellion are the works of Shepard fairey, who uses russian constructivist colour scheme to create striking images.

Cuban graffiti mainly focuses on the topic of Che Gevara. I was hesitant to use che gevara as an association to the rum as some people may not agree with some of the things he did. But he is also considered an iconic figure for rebellion which is the theme that runs through my brand.

Using inspiration from the image above, I experimented with a shepard fairlys art style using the cuban flags colours to produce a graffiti piece that didn't try to be an advert for the rum. Instead, the actual product can be secondary to the brands message to the audience.

The brand could expand this theme to diferent topics of interest and focus on certain individuals who have become cultural icons. The brand has to be careful about who it uses in the artwork and how. It would be inappropriate to blatantly try to associate nelson mandela with a rum product. Instead the brand has to be distanced so as to just promote the creating of this type of artwork.

my final design looked good on the bottle. a neck label unbalanced the look of the bottle and made it seem shorter. The designs all seems to work together. I had considered producing a box or tube for the bottle to be packaged in.

A wooden tube or wooden patterned tube would fit with the theme of rum barrels. The label could then wrap around the tube as it on the bottle

Alternatively a paper wrap would be more fitting to the authentic, handcrafted themes of the brand. Using a laser cutter to make a simple star and stripe patterned stencil .Then using spray paint I produced some prints which could test this as a possibility.

The prints seemed essay and covered the label which is quite eye-catching. To get a sense of how the label looked alongside other rum brands, I took into into my place of work and took these photos.

Having mocked up a rough lab design, I began making test prints. I found that the textures I had layered onto the label was not showing up when printed. The overall effect was quite considerable. The untextured print lacked depth and didn't connote the rustic look that I was needed. The texture is needed to make the label look handprinted. Ideally the label would be screen printed, but due to the timeframe I have to print.

A second attempt made the labels colours print extremely brighter.

Eventually, tweaking the settings and choosing a textured stock helped create a more hand rendered look.