Reviving the brew: Kungfu Pu’er's rebranded tale in tea

WPP’s global design agency, Design Bridge and Partners, partnered with Kungfu Pu’er Tea, a producer of fine tea in Yunnan province, China, to rebrand the tea by refreshing its brand positioning, identity and packaging design system. 

Produced in Yunnan with the traditional production method of the Ancient Tea Horse Road, or “Chamagudao”, a tea trade route that followed through China’s Sichuan province to Tibet for over 1,300 years, Kungfu Pu’er repositions itself as a wellness lifestyle brand, ‘made for urban knights’, for a new generation of tea drinkers.

Ray Lan, executive creative director from Design Bridge and Partners, China, shared the inspiration for the rebranding of Kungfu Pu’er, "After an in-depth discovery of China's tea culture and traditions, the market landscape and consumer needs, we found that tea can be the ‘antidote’ for people who live a fast-paced urban life."

Presented through a new brand slogan, “Drink with the world and live a transparent heart”, Design Bridge and Partners and Kungfu Pu’er tea makers reinvented the tea packaging, thoughts and concepts of drinking tea as a bridge for consumers to connect and explore their own hearts. 

"Tea is a staple in many people's lives. However, ancient tea-making traditions and the deep-rooted connections that tea drinking has to one's body and mind, particularly with pu'er tea, are no longer highlighted in modern society. Every element of our design process was carefully developed to capture the story, pay homage to traditions and craft, and encourage consumers to take a moment to stop, enjoy Kungfu Pu’er tea and to live like its urban knight, with meaning, " Lan explained.

The newly renovated swordsman logo of Kungfu Pu’er tea has evolved from the traditional Chinese martial knights, echoing Kungfu Pu’er tea brand promise as ‘a drink made for urban knights’.  

The mountain, the roof tile, the sword, and the tea on the logo were integrated with the Chinese name of Kungfu Pu’er tea and formed as an ancient stamp used for Chinese calligraphy.

The ‘bowa’ curve of Diaojiaolou, the line of a Shujian teacup, the tip of the sword, and the shape of the sky, each element of the marque, reflects the brand story of the travelling knight and protects the knight for his journey on the Ancient Tea Horse Road with thousands of years in history.

Together with the visual language for packaging, brand merchandise and gifting, the rebranding formed an artistic and romanticised reinterpretation of both Kung Fu warriors (or Chinese knights) and Chinese traditional watercolour paintings, calligraphy, sculpture, rice paper and seal carving textures, with the colour palettes in ink, red, gold and black, and black and white photography evoking the ancient Tea Horse Road landscapes.

CREDITS:

Ray Lan -Executive Creative Director
Aaron Zhang -Senior Designer
Linxuan Lyu -Senior Designer
Aimee Liu -Managing Client Director
Iris Qi -Client Director
Ceres Gu -Seniro Client Executive
Chuhan Wang -Client Manager
Denis Deng- Senior Strategist

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