It was during a small business think tank in Toronto last year that We Are Tonic‘s CEO Anita Dong approached Lake of Bays Brewing founder and president Darren Smith and bluntly informed him his company needed help with its brand identity, and that her agency could help.
The result of that conversation? The Baysville, Ont.-based craft brewer has introduced a complete brand refresh with We Are Tonic that includes new packaging and labels, a new mobile app and a revamped website.
Lake of Bays is attempting to carve out a place in a thriving but crowded category. The Ontario Craft Brewers’ most recent master brand list featured 131 beers produced by 26 different companies.
In many ways craft beer is the new imported, said We Are Tonic creative director Dave Sylvestre, but the challenge is sticking out amid a sea of competitors. Like the similarly crowded wine category, a distinctive label can be a determining factor in generating trial, he said.
“We were just looking for a little more pop on the shelf,” said Smith, who first began brewing while attending Montreal’s McGill University (no doubt making him popular with classmates) and established Lake of Bays in 2010.
“Beer’s a pretty crowded marketplace, and the craft beer space in particular is getting more and more crowded,” said Smith. “We needed something that would allow us to stand out.”
Previously, Lake of Bay’s seven brands – comprised of three year-round brews and a collection of seasonal products – were all featured under the Lake of Bays name, identified by the type of beer (pale ale, lager, etc.).
The rebrand includes individual brand identities for all of the brands in its portfolio: Flagship brand Crosswind Pale Ale and its two other year-round beers (Spark House Red Ale and its newest brand, Rock Cut Baysville Lager) as well as the seasonal beers 10 Point India Pale Ale, Old North Mocha Porter and Spring Maple Belgian Blonde.
Each of the new labels incorporates iconography familiar to Muskoka residents, including a bi-plane, antlers and a fire tower. All of the icons adhere to the theme “the industrious north.” Sylvestre told Marketing that Lake of Bays’ biggest asset was its location. But while Lake of Bays’ rival Muskoka Brewery portrays a vision of the north that reflects its reputation as cottage country (all of its packaging features the iconic Muskoka chair), We Are Tonic opted for a vision that reflects the region’s reputation as industrious and hard working.
“There was nothing really wrong with it, but it wasn’t really standing out and it didn’t have a distinct identify,” said Sylvestre of the previous branding. “We built an iconography that would be absolutely unique to Baysville.”
Lake of Bays’ new Beer Finder mobile app, meanwhile, uses smartphones’ GPS capabilities to show where Lake of Bays is available, either on-tap or at LCBO/The Beer Store locations. The app also features capsule reviews of the establishments serving the Lake of Bays product.
Lake of Bays is a small player in Canada’s approximately $4.5 billion beer market, with annual production of approximately 8,000 hectolitres. However, Smith believes it is well positioned in the burgeoning craft beer segment.
While its distribution is currently primarily limited to Ontario, the company has undertaken what Smith characterized as “test shipments” into several U.S. markets including New York, Boston and Chicago, as well as markets in Nevada and California. The company received a “great response” to its products, said Smith, who is also attempting to secure distribution in Manitoba and other western Canadian markets.
The company has taken what Smith characterizes as a “liquid on lips” approach to marketing, largely eschewing traditional advertising – with the exception of some local market billboard ads and vehicle wraps – in favour of LCBO tastings and trade shows. The beer is currently served in more than 150 bars and restaurants across Ontario.
Smith, though, has big plans for the company. “We want to become one of the major players on the Canadian beer scene,” he said. “We’re shooting for the top, no doubt about it.”
