Blues Hog Rebrand
Blues Hog is a BBQ sauce brand with roots in authentic, competition-level barbecue culture, full of Memphis charm and jazz. But its branding doesn't seem to reflect that story.
Graphic Designer
Timeline
5 Weeks, Summer 2025
Tools
Figma, Photoshop, Illustrator, Sora
Visual Design
Logo Design
Branding Strategy
Rapid Prototyping
Interviewing
Lynn Vo
Challenge
Blues Hog is ready for a visual transformation that better reflects its quality, complexity, and potential to connect with a broader, style-savvy audience.
Overview
While graphic design is one of my true loves, I delightfully applied user experience principles. With a few hints of spice and roots to the past of Blues Hog, I aimed to elevate the brand by celebrating it with a reimagined logo, electrifying slogans, cohesive branding. Not associated with Blues Hog.
Research
While Blues Hog is still a popular brand in the culinary landscape, their branding could be updated to further push their branding to the next level. I first looked at what parts of the brand should be celebrated and what was holding it back.
Interviews: I conducted seven interviews over a week long period discussing participant flavor profiles and what connected them to a food brand.
Respondent 1: "I often go for branding that seems trustworthy, grounded, and of course delicious. I haven't really been disappointed by anything my family and friends vouch for."
Respondent 2: "I wouldn't go for Blues Hog right now as it feels like it's not as professional as the rest. I would actually be slightly scared to try it!"
Process
Wording: Blues Hog is a decades-old, award-winning brand that spoke to me volumes of sophistication, noir, jazz, coolness, and a certain amount of quirk that I believe needed a little bit of polish. Think smoky jazz clubs, moody lighting, and an underground flair.
Moodboards: With these words in mind, I pulled images and branding from all over the web that reflected that.
Logo: Hogs in suits and fedoras jamming it out isn't something you come across often. I loved the energy, but wanted to harness it into a even more charming design. With guidance from my peers and professors, I was encouraged to experiment with a wide variety of logo concepts.
Design System: Obviously blue would have to be part of the color palette, but everything else had to be thought for! I found Rumble Brave, a beautiful serif font reflecting Blues Hogs' flaunting yet elegant style.
Packaging: Going through three rounds of packaging concepts, I funneled all my research and design thinking into a luxurious giftbook featuring three BBQ flavors.
Reflection
What surprised me about this project was not just the rate at which I was able to quickly reiterate my creativity, but that most of my design was created in Figma, a software designed for product designers in use of web and apps.