World class start to Onfire Design's 20th Anniversary
To ring in 2025, which also happens to be Onfire Design’s 20th Anniversary, the company has picked up several prestigious international awards. Three Gold, a Silver, and two Bronze from the World Brand Design Society – recently judged in the UK. To top it off, Onfire was also awarded Best Agency Work of the Year for its brand refresh of Salash Delicatessen.
What a way to celebrate 20 years in business!
The Best Agency Work of the Year was reflected in three Gold for Salash Packaging, Typography and Brand Redesign.
A small, family-run smallgoods business based in Kumeu, Salash's point of difference is its family history and geographic origins in Northern Serbia.
The design process explored Eastern European region's visual styles, patterns, and culture, taking historical cues, and reinterpreting them for today’s foodie consumer.
The bespoke wordmark draws inspiration from the Cyrillic alphabet, while Serbia’s national flag directly inspires the colour palette. The simple blue, white, and red also contrast starkly with the earthy tones used by competitor brands.
Early success has seen the brand achieve its goal of being listed in Farro food market stores and positioning in nationwide retailers. Proving good design can lead to awards – and commercial rewards for this family-run business.
A silver award from the World Brand Design Society went to Onfire client Veesey for Brandmark and Type Design.
Having established itself in the growing dairy-free cheese category, Veesey needed to refresh its packaging and positioning to help differentiate from competitors using similar free-form language and assets.
'Intolerant to boring' became the new position, opening a design language based on happiness, epic food, and enthusiasm. This is reflected in the new Veesey wordmark as well as bright and punchy pack formats.
Veesey is difficult to miss in chillers and challenges consumers to rethink their perceptions of what dairy-free cheese should look like. Something that the Award judges also noticed!
Not to be out done, Rolling Meadow cleaned up with two Bronze Awards for Packaging Design. One for Illustration and another for Brand Redesign.
As an existing cheese brand in New Zealand supermarkets, Rolling Meadow lacked any ownable brand or visual assets which led to the range losing its impact instore and lacking a compelling proposition for the consumer.
The brand's visual language underwent a significant transformation to align with its new positioning “We keep you rolling.” Driving ideas of big energy, healthy fuel, and versatility, the new visual assets are anchored by bold, vibrant, and award-winning food illustrations.
The new brand logo and messaging system also caught the eyes of the judges who rewarded it with Bronze for Product Redesign.
Onfire Design Founder, Sam Allan, is extremely proud of his team’s efforts and acknowledges his clients’ vision for his company’s success. “It was a tough year for all business in NZ but thanks to our hard-working team, and our clients’ spirit of adventure, we were able to finish 2024 positively –on an international stage. It’s an exciting start to our 20th Anniversary year!”
View the full Salash project →
