The Brrrg: Ice Cream for Everyone
My Role: Strategy, Brand Identity, Motion Design, Logo Design
The Philadelphia Zoo partnered with my school's program in 2019 to help them concept and create new pop-up shops at the Philadelphia Zoo. Our target was not only to create branding but to also find and solve consumer experiences.
The Story Behind the Idea
The Brrrg is an ice cream shop that I created and concepted while researching the Philadelphia Zoo and observing the user experiences first hand as a guest myself.
I noticed many snack shacks and restaurants on the premises had peanut-free tables away from the regular tables.
Although nuanced, I observed how isolating it could be for some students with food allergies to be separated away from their peers, but by choice but by design and system.
When I was thinking about a restaurant to create, I put myself in the shoes of the student I saw alone with peanut allergies.
I created The Brrrg, an ice cream shop for everyone with an emphasis on inclusion for those with food allergies built into the menu and very foundation.
The Brrrg was awarded 3rd place for design and concept by the Philadelphia Zoo.
Although it didn't get to become a real shop, I hope that it continues to inspire and expand the boundaries on what design can do for us when we push against set standards.
Research & Context
According to FARE research and education on food allergies, this year alone, one in 13 children will have a diagnosed food allergy. In the last 30 years, food allergies have increased by 50 %, yet our way of handling and dealing with food allergies hasn’t changed since the 1980s.
Public institutions such as schools and daycares have allergy safe zones for students but the outcome is often in the form of separate lunch tables far away from other students. Children with food allergies often feel isolated and left out as a result.
As designers, our job is to problem-solve not just visually but empathetically.
When I thought of the Brrrg, my written assignment I was given was to come up with a pop-up shop at the zoo, preferably zoo themed, with an emphasis on innovation and solving a consumer problem.
Logo & Branding
The zoo has penguins and polar bears. My place is an ice cream shop located in the zoo. Penguins and polar bears naturally live in the arctic.
Ice cream is cold just like the arctic.
I experimented with many different logos and then settled on a friendly polar bear scoop of ice cream. I designed the cone to be like a regular cone with a cylinder base since these cones are easy for children to grasp and hold.
Don't be shy, say hi!
Note: All of the projects in my portfolio are designs that are publicly available and searchable on Google.
If you would like to inquire more about a specific project, such as sketches, storyboards, concept work,
processes etc, please reach out to me for more information.