A full face worth of effective natural color cosmetics seemed like a pipedream not long ago. Now with the rise of indie brands, many of which center on clean and green beauty alternatives, it’s a dream that just maybe within reach.
Au Naturale has been in this color niche since Ashley Prange founded the brand in 2012. Now that her company and the clean / green beauty market are maturing, it made sense for Au Naturale to elevate the look and feel of the brand.
Brand development
For the rebranding initiative, Au Naturale partnered with Base Beauty Creative Agency. Jodi Katz, is founder and creative director of the New York City – based agency and takes great pride in the full spectrum of services she can offer to growing brands like Au Naturale (which has its headquarters in Green Bay, Wisconsin).
A brand refresh like the one Au Naturale has accomplished required “PR strategy and execution of course,” acknowledges Katz. “But [Prange] also needed highly experienced senior people to help guide a primary packaging elevation, total revise of their branding and refined messaging,” notes Katz.
“She could do all of that with Base Beauty. She knows Base Beauty is only a phone call away when there is exciting news to share and also when the visual merchandising manufacturer doesn't deliver, or when there is internal debate around where the logo should live on the outer cartons and she wants an expert's ear,” Katz explains in a statement shared with Cosmetics Design.
Joint effort
Commenting on the rebranding Prange, who not only founded the brand but also continues to serve as CEO of Au Naturale Cosmetics, remarked, “It was invaluable to work with Base Beauty Creative Agency on the recent Au Naturale Cosmetics rebrand.”
“Base worked closely with our internal team, giving extensive feedback on asset designs from a new logo to packaging materials to in-store displays. Their team's creative insights and beauty industry expertise helped to take our thinking to a new level. We are thrilled with the results and excited for the new and improved Au Naturale Cosmetics.”
Repackaged
The rebranding refreshed Au Naturale at nearly every touchpoint. Importantly though, the product formulas, which the brand has become known for over the years, remain the same.
Au Naturale has a newly refreshed website, updated messaging, and reimagined primary and secondary packaging. Like many brands, indie brands in particular, Au Naturale found packaging somewhat perplexing. “Redesigning the components was one of the most challenging parts to this project,” says Prange, in a media release about the rebranding. “I wanted to find interesting applicators and materials that were modern, functional and unique to the market. After many back and forth packages and calls with our designers, we finally landed on a collection that we love.” Au Naturale’s loose powder now comes in a spray-style dispenser and eyeshadows that once came in pots are now sold in roll-on applicators.
More obvious perhaps upon first glance, the company logo and font have been updated as has the messaging on the brand's secondary packaging. As the media release notes, “The new product boxes showcase Au Naturale’s clean element by highlighting ‘What’s Inside’ and ‘What’s Not’.”