SLAPS

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a consumer-focused cannabis company.

What challenge were you trying to address with SLAPS?

They created a logo, brand strategy, visual identity, and packaging for us. In essence, they helped us set up our brand.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They first focused on designing our packaging. Their team focused on delivering a balanced, peaceful style that would attract our target audience. Based on this work, they then created a brand strategy and guidelines, brand materials color scheme, and design for our website.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a brand strategist, a content creator, and a designer.

How did you come to work with SLAPS?

I found them through their Instagram page. The visuals on their page really stood out to me. I also knew the owner, so I felt extremely comfortable reaching out. After looking at them in conjunction with some other vendors, we chose them due to their authentic designs and speed of delivery.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between €10,000–€20,000 (approximately $12,000–$24,000 USD) with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from December 2020–March 2021. I'm hoping to work with them again in the future.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The end products were quite strong. They identified concrete target audiences and came up with an innovative brand strategy. We tested their deliverables with a small focus group that responded positively to what they saw. We’re excited to see how everything goes once our website is live.

How did SLAPS perform from a project management standpoint?

Overall, the engagement was positive and professional. Their team was responsive and always met deadlines. They were clear and concise, making sure tasks didn’t take longer than needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They understood what we were thinking and were able to translate it to the brand materials.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I wish they had a more development-focused portion of their team. That way, they could have also built my website.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear with what you want, but be open to their ideas as well. Their team is smart and can provide legitimate feedback that will make the project as successful as possible.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Verde is a concept that my partner and I started to explore the interest in the market. The product is a CBD and matcha infused canned soda.

For what projects/services did your company hire SLAPS, and what were your goals?

Early in development we knew that creating a brand around the product would be crucial to garner attention. We wanted to create not only a product that consumers love but a brand behind it that conveys why we exist. We hired SLAPS to help us refine our story and create it visually.

How did you select this vendor?

SLAPS was a referral from another early stage CPG brand. We had a couple calls and we knew immediately that this was the team we wanted to work with. As the story started unravelling on these early calls, we felt the SLAPS team picking it up and running with it as though they have been along for the entire journey. They understood our vision and added so much to it.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

SLAPS allowed us to stay very involved with the creative process which gave us a sense of security and ownership of our brand that's tough to get with agencies.To start, we had three deep dives with the SLAPS team to discuss where we are now, our vision for the future and all things in between.

Then slaps created a custom brand playbook that covered the foundational brand from our purpose, vision, mission and story to our tone of voice, pillar characteristics, target personas and competitive positioning. After this was approved (and they nailed it), they moved on to translating this to a visual identity. In the end we ended up with a logo, tag lines, brand colors, mood board, packaging, guidelines for art direction, and a handful of visual elements to use throughout medias.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Sebastien, the founder of SLAPS, was our point contact. We interfaced with the strategy director and the lead designer on a few occasions as well.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Our brand is fully fleshed out and we use the presentation SLAPS provided in our investor pitches.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Their project management style was very hands-on. We did most of our communication through zoom calls for review or Whatsapp and email for shorter communication. Everything went very smoothly and all deadlines were met.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

How involved the whole team was into our project. It felt like they were part of the team from day 1. This dedication made it so much easier for us to express our ideas and we got a lot of creative support and ideation from their Creative Director.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Knowing what the process would have been from day 1. They knew what they were doing but sometimes we weren't aware of all the deadlines. In the end this had zero impact on the collaboration and final work.