The two different logos of Omaka that are used interchangeably
Located in a brutalist concrete campus (that formerly housed Stockholm’s School of Architecture), Omaka is an artisanal brewery started in 2020 by Hedda Spendrup. The company’s name itself is a Swedish word which roughly translates to “odd, mismatched, or diverse”. Such a notion is reflected all throughout the company’s visual identity developed by Stockholm Design Lab, based around two parallel but strongly contrasted logos in two very different typefaces – Linotype Didot and VP Pixel CRT – the former creating an air of classical elegance and luxury while the latter implies modern technological rationality.
The design studio describes the project as follows:
The starting point for the identity is graphic clarity and classic sophistication, paired with the changeable and expressive. This dualism is reflected in the choice of two contrasting fonts, and two logos, with completely different character and origin – which interact in a constant tug of war. […] The name, as well as the brand concept “irregular elegance”, represents the ambition and the contrasts that the brand wants to live. Just as playful and inclusive in atmosphere, as uncompromising and ambitious in taste.
In her review for BP&O, designer and writer Eleanor Robertson states of the branding and the dichotomy of the two fonts chosen:
It is cleverly done and extends well to poster layouts where the Swiss restraint of a strong grid and the typographical contrast between large and small emphasises the idea of imperfect symmetry, though the text variant of the digital typeface is more legible than Didot at smaller sizes. Neither is quite the workhorse font needed for body copy and a monospaced alternative in lowercase might give the scheme greater flexibility.
The signage is striking – set against a concrete wall, topped off with security cameras and snow, it’s a picture of Nordic noir – but the logo/s also suffer at smaller sizes: the thin strokes of the serif are lost while the horizontal slabs that form the partner wordmark bleed together.
Nevertheless, Stockholm Design Lab’s packaging system is extremely successful. The collection of bottles and cans comprises a repeatable structure of two complementary halves. Here the central brand idea (‘omaka’) is fully developed, pairing graphic clarity with the changeable and unexpected to reflect Spendrup’s beers, Siberg’s experimental flavours, and the relationship between them.
The brewery's branding used in various print applications
Dual signage is consistently used on the company's architecture as well.
The product packaging reflects duality by being half visual and half textual. The textual half uses LT Didot for the company name, while the beer description and ingredients are set in VP Pixel CRT.
The brewery's branding used in various print applications
Branded stationery developed for Omaka by Stockholm Design Lab
