Thread & Tonic: Crafting modern luxury
VISUAL IDENTITY
COPYWRITING
SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY
ART DIRECTION + DESIGN
The epitome of modern luxury.
Thread + Tonic is a family owned leather bag and accessories brand combining material science and technology with exquisite craftsmanship and functional design.
The brand is on a mission to change the way we produce, use and dispose of our bags and accessories. This includes producing their own less-impactful materials in a fully solar powered factory.
It can be challenging for any new brand to stand out in the fashion industry but it’s increasingly difficult for those focusing on a sustainability narrative. This largely comes down to ubiquitous greenwashing and the fact that customers are starting to demand sustainability as standard. This was the challenge Thread + Tonic came to us with. They didn’t want to be just another eco brand, they wanted to show their community that choosing sustainable alternatives doesn’t have to mean compromising on style or quality and that sustainability should not be a tick box exercise.
When Thread + Tonic came to us, they had the foundations of a strong brand, they knew what they stood for and what they were on a mission to do, but they needed to communicate that to the outside world in a genuine way and show people why they should care. So that’s what we did.
our
strategy
No brand is ever the same and that goes for the way they are built too. Having worked with a number of freelance designers, product experts and brand advisors right at the beginning, the Thread + Tonic brand was feeling a little disjointed from an outsider’s perspective. We worked closely with founders Nakul and Sonal to reshape what they had and craft the Thread + Tonic brand in a way that spoke to a discerning modern audience.
The easy option would be to lean on the materials they use. It’s what most eco-friendly brands lead with because it’s the obvious, most tangible element of a brand’s impact. However, after learning more about Nakul and Sonal’s vision for Thread + Tonic, it was clear that this wasn’t just about better materials, it was about challenging convention and constantly asking, ‘how can we do better?’
That’s the phrase we built the Thread + Tonic brand around. How can we do better? It’s now a guiding philosophy for their team and a point of connection with their community.
art direction
It was important that their imagery reflected the quality of their products and the incredible craftsmanship that goes into making them. We planned and directed two photoshoots with photographers we knew would produce imagery that told the Thread + Tonic story effortlessly.
For their e-commerce imagery we kept things simple but actively avoided the typical bright white background shots standard online stores opt for. We wanted this imagery to clearly show the product and its details whilst also providing a sense of calm and luxury to the customer when browsing online. Working with our friends at Handover we came up with a simple set up that was easy to repeat for all products and offered a clean, modern finish.
When it came to lifestyle, the aim was to combine the modern functionality of the product with the brand’s love for the natural world. We shot the bags and accessories being used by models in urban/city style clothing but in a wild and remote setting on the UK coast. The colours used in Thread + Tonic’s first collection are heavily inspired by colours found in the British countryside, so the location was the perfect fit.
