Absolut Redesigned Bottle

Design Agency: Brand Union
Executive Creative Director: Mattias Lindstedt Managing Director: Jonas Andersson

Industrial Design: No Picnic Industrial Designer: Urban Ahlgren
Bottle Production: Ardagh Glass Limmared AB Development Manager: Fredrik Källqvist Project Manager Added Value: Julia Schillerås

The Absolut Company
Vice President Operations Absolut: Krister Asplund Global Director Brand Strategy Absolut: Peder Clason
Global Marketing Manager Absolut and Project Leader: Magnus Hammarskjöld Global Design Strategy Manager Absolut: Caroline Mörnås
Product Development Manager Absolut: Susanne Malmberg

Absolut Looks to Create an Icon for the Future with Bottle Redesign

This year, Absolut looks to the future and makes a new mark by introducing a freshly redesigned bottle – an icon for the future made by a passionate group of creatives who push boundaries in their pursuit of perfection.

Since its launch in 1979, the Absolut Vodka bottle has stood out for its shape. The new bottle is a transformation of the original, featuring an updated two line logo, a new script, a redesigned medallion, reduced glass weight and a new brand signifier. To update what was already seen as a perfect bottle, Absolut brought together a group of creatives including a master illustrator and master calligrapher, each adding their mark to the new bottle through their own pursuit of perfection.

“The Absolut bottle has been iconic for several generations; now it’s time to make the next bold statement for Absolut. Our goal has been to transform an already perfect bottle to make it even better. We were extremely privileged to work with the very best creatives within their discipline. The new bottle maintains everything that is Absolut Vodka – bold, original and creative, making it ready to face to future.” says Peder Clason, Global Brand Strategy Director, Absolut.

“Absolut is a bold, creative brand and for some time we have wanted to reignite both those aspects in our already iconic bottle design, renewing the creative expression of our most visible product. Through the recent redesign of our flavor range, we gained the confidence to implement a level of detail in our collaborators’ work in a way that previously would not have been possible. The end result is true to Swedish design tradition where every part has a purpose and is executed in a simple but elegant way,” says Caroline Mörnås, Global Design Strategy Manager, Absolut.

A trendsetter among the design community, the Absolut Vodka bottle is already respected all over the world. The bottle refresh was done in collaboration with Brand Union, which accepted the challenge to create an icon for the future. One of the most significant updates was to add a brand signifier to the back of the bottle, adding a bold, new short hand for the Absolut brand. The iconic shape of the bottle has been strengthened to feature more clearly defined shoulders, straightened neck and body, and a flattened bottom, while also using a reduced glass weight to minimize environmental impact. Crafted by a group of creatives working towards the same goal of perfection – just like Absolut Vodka itself – the new bottle is the brand’s latest expression of its dedication to quality. The creatives behind the redesigned bottle includes:

Luca Barcellona, Calligrapher
Absolut brings the passion of its ‘One Source’ philosophy directly onto its updated bottle with a new script. “My craft involves using the ancient art of writing and languages to create fresh, new work. Letters are the main ingredient of my creations, so for the Absolut bottle I experimented with many options that reflected the Swedish style. The result is cool, simple and modern, with an elegant touch.”

Martin Mörck, Illustrator and Engraver
The seal on the bottle features a portrait of Lars Olsson Smith, the founder of Absolut who pioneered the continuous distillation process. “To pay homage to the man himself, we tried new ideas again and again until we found the perfect interpretation – a bold image which depicts Lars Olsson Smith at the height of his success.”

While the bottle has evolved, the vodka remains the same. As part of its ‘One Source’ philosophy, every bottle of Absolut is crafted in the village of Åhus in Southern Sweden, where vodka-making knowledge has been accumulated and passed down through generations.

The new bottle will be distributed worldwide in fall/winter 2015.

What’s changed?
The new bottle is a transformation of the original and it features an updated two line logo, a new script, a redesigned medallion, reduced glass weight and a new brand signifier. To update the bottle, Absolut brought together a group of creatives including a master illustrator and master calligrapher.

While the bottle has evolved, the vodka remains the same – since 1879 Absolut has been crafted in the village of Åhus, Sweden, made locally using ingredients from one single estate to guarantee its excellent quality.