Do the Dew!
In honor of my wife, I figured that my first package design post should be on her favorite beverage – Mountain Dew… er, Mtn Dew.
I recently noticed that Mountain Dew changed the look of the packaging for their regular flavor soda. Looking at the picture above, you can see the older design on the right and the newer design on the left. I just happened to get the opportunity to get a picture of both of them on one of my Walmart runs.
All I See is Green
Now, I’m torn on my feelings for the new design. Yes, it’s much more eye-catching than the old design. It has brighter shades of green that stand out. And it doesn’t have what looks like an army of stalagmite rockets, like the older design. The vector graphic that reminds me of the “XTREME!!!” 90’s is very eye-catching. However, I have, on a couple occasions, mistaken a Diet Mountain Dew for a regular Mountain Dew with the new design.
The Pros
Personally, I like the new angle of the logo, which allows it to be less skewed and larger/more open feeling. It doesn’t feel squished and confined, which allows it to give an energetic feeling.
All the information, such as calories, quantity, and size of cans has all been put in the same corner. Yet, the majority of the information has been given less of a presence than it used to have. I don’t personally mind this as much because I’m not worried about how many calories or grams of fat are in a can, but those who are worried about it might have a harder time.
In total, I think the new design conveys a more youthful, energy-filled vibe than the old design. Especially when you compare the two designs side-by-side.
The Cons
There’s not a lot that I don’t like about this design, so for the cons, I have to be a bit nit-picky. One thing I noticed is how the design kind of looks like it’s a shoulder strap for the package. The bulk busyness of the design moves from the top-right corner to the bottom-left corner (or vice-versa, if you prefer). There’s “white” space in the upper-left corner and in the bottom-right corner, though the nutrition information covers that corner. Again, not a huge deal, just something that I noticed.
Mainly, my biggest gripe is how similar the new Mountain Dew and Diet Mountain Dew designs look. It’s almost identical, when you’re looking through the window of one of the beverage coolers at Walmart and you’re reaching down with a basket full of stuff, so you’re doing a no-look grab for the bottle of regular Mountain Dew while your foot keeps the door open and the most embarrassing groceries in your basket are falling out while everyone else in line is watching you, trying to not make eye contact.
You can see why this could be a problem.
A Mountain of a Conclusion (But Not Really)
All in all, I think this redesign was a good one. I didn’t realize Mountain Dew needed a redesign, until seeing the new and old designs together. This new, brighter, energetic design makes the old design look dingy and almost 80’s retro, but not as cool. Much like an Uncle Steve and his red 1985 Firebird, complete with cassette deck.
The new design feels refreshing and vibrant and is certainly eye catching. You definitely won’t mistake a Mountain Dew container with a Sprite/7-Up/Canada Dry/another green packaged soda container. Just watch out for the Diet Mountain Dews. They’re tricksy!
