Jacobsen Refreshed

Robot Food Refreshes Jacobsen: Carlsberg’s Danish Premium Beer Brand

Robot Food has partnered with Jacobsen to modernise its visual and verbal identity. Founded by Carlsberg and based in the original Carlsberg brewery in Valby, Copenhagen, Jacobsen is a specialty beer brand with a rich heritage and forward-thinking approach.

Named after Carlsberg’s pioneering founder J.C. Jacobsen, the brand is known for its dedication to innovation and craftsmanship – producing high-quality beers with exceptional flavours that reflect their brewing artistry.

The refresh strikes a balance between celebrating the brand’s history and sophistication, whilst ensuring it maintains relevancy amongst modern consumers and changing drinking habits.

From tradition to modernity

Jacobsen partnered with UK based branding studio Robot Food to simplify and amplify its identity and brand assets. The focus was on making the brand easier to spot, easier to shop, and more accessible to a wider range of drinkers, while retaining its premium positioning.

The combination of tradition and modernity was key in ensuring Jacobsen remains relevant in a competitive market, aligning with modern consumer preferences, but without compromising its core values.

Details that matter

By honouring the past with a firm eye on progression, Jacobsen perfectly balances its commitment to quality and innovation. This sentiment served as a guiding principle throughout the brand refresh. Robot Food focused on developing established brand assets with a contemporary mindset, resulting in an updated identity that looks directly to the future.

Ben Brears, Creative Director at Robot Food adds; “the brand identity was honed and refined to aid clarity and create a more positive outlook. After improving the illustrative detail, the simple switch of the J.C Jacobsen bust to face forwards rather than backwards, celebrates the brand’s progressive and innovative nature”.

One detail that holds special significance is the inclusion of “Bryggeri” (brewery) in the identity, bringing it closer to the brand’s home at Husbryggeriet Jacobsen. This subtle yet meaningful addition reinforces the deep-rooted connection between Jacobsen and its place of origin.

The updated identity helps to move Jacobsen into a new era with a bolder, more accessible outlook that has greater impact at shelf.

Alongside the updated identity, Robot Food also renovated the application of the brand signature patterns and colour palette. The previous ‘organoleptic’ patterns were born from the sensorial tasting notes of each brew’s individual flavour and reflective of the drinking experience you could expect from each beer type.

Rich Robinson, Design Director at Robot Food explains “the patterns were a unique and interesting point of difference for the brand to communicate the drinking experience, but they lacked impact at a busy retail fixture or bar back. We reworked the patterns to create a more eye-catching expression that also aids shoppability with greater differentiation between variants. We ensured recognisability for existing consumers, plus created new ones for new products that sit in harmony with the existing range”.

A refreshed consumer experience

To align with evolving consumer preferences, Robot Food developed a design system that seamlessly integrates cans and bottles into one cohesive expression, with a consistent and flexible visual language across formats. The clarified pack structure improves the reading sequence and helps consumers to navigate between ranges including seasonal, limited edition and collaborative brews.

A key element of the Jacobsen brand is to build a bridge between beer and food, inspiring and elevating the consumer experience. Back of pack now features clear tasting notes and food pairings to inspire usage occasion and encourage trial across the range.

Rune Schlosser, Brand Manager at Jacobsen concludes; “the new system Robot Food created was crafted with adaptability in mind, ensuring it delivers seamlessly across all touchpoints. The refreshed packs offer a coherent and engaging experience, with great visual standout that will capture attention across the bars and shops of Denmark for both existing and new customers alike”.

The new look and feel will roll out in bars and retail across Denmark in early 2025.