After enjoying nearly 12 years of the same, distinctive look, Pangea Organics underwent a complete rebrand in 2018. This was created entirely by their in-house team. By all standards it was a lightning fast and highly rigorous creative endeavor that successfully evolved the Skincare, Bodycare, and Lip Care lines’ aesthetic while maintaining accurate representation of its commitment to elegance and environmental ethos.
The rebranding was a collaboration between Pangea’s Founder and CEO, Joshua Onysko, and its award-winning lead designer, Josh Ivy. Joshua Onysko, who is a multimedia artist, skincare alchemist, and perfumer, knew exactly how he wanted the rebranding to look. He conceived the beginnings of Pangea’s aesthetic rebirth through a series of 30 paintings he made while snow-bound in his Colorado A-frame in winter 2017. He then passed those paintings along to Ivy, who translated them into design concepts.
The rebranding process formally began in January 2018. The Skincare line was completed in a remarkably fast three months; the Bodycare in two. Pangea’s streamlined process is reflected in its visual coherency and the deceptively simple sophistication of its new look.
The rebranding’s creative brief contained only four criteria. The first was to tone down the rainbow palette on the previous packaging designs. The second was to shift Pangea’s Skincare containers away from its signature brown color. The third was to color-code Pangea’s Skincare by Skin Type. The fourth was to uplevel its already excellent packaging eco-credentials.
On a visual level, their success is evident. In keeping with the paintings he created, Joshua Onysko wanted it to appear as if paint was splattered organically, naturally, and effortlessly on the top edge of the tubes. At least 100 versions of this look were created before landing on the perfect design. This became the cornerstone of the rebranding. From there, a palette of gray, stone, and blue were meticulously developed to represent each Skin Type. The brand’s popular Japanese Matcha Tea, Acai, & Goji Berry Facial Mask received its own, unique green color, and its best-selling Egyptian Geranium, Adzuki Bean, & Cranberry Facial Scrub punctuates the line with a deep, garnet red.
As for its Bodycare, the duo chose to use Pangea’s iconic brown on its bottles, tying in the new look of its Skincare via gold splattered ink, silk-screened onto its bottles.
What is less obvious—but equally substantial—is that with this rebrand, Pangea has moved all of its Skincare into sugarcane bio-resin tubes. Sugarcane bio-resin is the most advanced eco-packaging available. For every metric ton of sugarcane polyethylene that is produced, 3.02 metric tons of carbon dioxide are sequestered from the atmosphere. The sugarcane crops are almost entirely irrigated by natural rainfall, are non-gmo certified, and the leftover sugarcane pulp is used as biofuel to power the factories. As well, the tubes are 100% recyclable.
Though its look has changed, Pangea’s sky-high standards for purity and efficacy remain the same. All of their formulations are a product of the combined wisdom of cutting-edge science, organic technology, and the elegant perfection of an untamed creative process. All of their choices―from fair-trade, organic sourcing, to 100% plant-based, non-synthetic formulas―stem from a commitment to beautify and nourish their customers while keeping the earth's best interest at the forefront of every decision.
Art Director: Joshua Scott Onysko
Designer: Josh Ivy
Photography: Oh Whoa
© Pangea Organics 2018
