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Harry Bennett
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Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry


Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry
Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry
Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry
Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry

WASTECARE, launched by Japanese-German textile start-up AIZOME, illustrates the latest in dermatological technology and development, utilising the water waste from its textile dyeing factory to create healthy, all-natural skincare. Marking an environmental and technical leap in the field. In need of an identity and complete product design for the endeavour, AIZOME partnered with Munich-based Serviceplan Innovation and NYC and Shanghai-based design agency Workbyworks to craft as much.

“The design system with dots and connecting lines was inspired by the skeletal structural formulas,” such as those used in biochemistry to visualise complex molecular structures, Workbyworks Founder & Designer Han Gao and Serviceplan Innovation’s Art Director duo, Rohil Borole and Kai West Schlosser, tell us. “AIZOME’s mission is to replace toxic synthetic chemicals with plant-based dyes,” they continue, “which are, as everything around us, also chemical substances,” looking to demystify the idea that anything chemical is by default a bad thing. 

“Similarly to how chemistry is not inherently good or bad, our design system starts out as a neutral canvas,” the trio detail, “that can be used to display any kind of information,” including every graphic element, from systematic data visualisation to the bilingual inclusion of Japanese characters. As a result, the brand output, whether digital or physical, captures an undeniable tactility and intricacy – organically displaying stark information and technical drawings without appearing overwhelming or complex. 

Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry
Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry

Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ achieved this feat through not only their emphasis on material choice but on their studious approach to typography, opting for Neue Haas Grotesk and Midashi Gothic Pro MB31 for the Latin and Japanese body type choices. “They are two timeless typefaces, matching AIZOME’s reinvention of traditional aizome dyeing,” the trio details, “and for the titles we created our own,” crafting the bespoke typeface Ultra One, to be used across the leading typographic outputs. “We used the traditional Mincho type, Hiragino Mincho Pro W6, as a base,” they note, reflecting and referencing the ancient dyeing traditions rooted firmly in Japanese culture, “and then we used p5js to generate frequency waves on top,” representing the ultrasound technology used in the textile dyeing process. 

Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry
Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry

Continuing their aesthetic and physical embodiment of AIZOME’s innovative processes and methodologies, the creative duo also carefully approached the product’s shape, size and packaging, opting for all-recycled and fully recyclable materials. “The box is made from recycled cardboard, layered for stability,” the trio explain, “with a compact form factor so it doesn’t require any other packaging for shipping,” all distributed with an unconventional three-part editorial publication.

Serviceplan Innovation and Workbyworks’ compelling WASTECARE brand challenges the textile industry

“All three items come in different dimensions, assembled on a six-by-six grid pin registry,” they make clear, giving the user a comprehensive overview of the company, its products and the intentions behind it. “The pins permeate and connect the materials through a grid of holes,” the trio continue, “which represent the physical principle that is the core of AIZOME’s innovative technology,” conveying an atomic, molecular system akin to the materials and elements behind the product’s production. “As for the vial and applicator,” they conclude, “we chose a combination of glass vial and pipette without a suction cup,” avoiding any plastic use whilst creating a satisfying, haptic experience.

Graphic Design

Serviceplan Innovation
Workbyworks

Typography

Ultra One (custom), based on Hiragino Mincho Pro W6
Neue Haas Grotesk by Max Miedinger and Christian Schwartz
A-OTF Midashi Go MB31 Pro

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