Gerundio + Ouipil

How to blend tradition and modernity in the same brand?

Putting an idea into tangible form through a unique strategy

Services

  • Brand and Communications
  • Experience and Interaction

Challenge

Ouipil is a brand born from the desire of sharing the taste and essence of Mexican huipiles with the world.

Understanding that the bulk of the market is made up of foreign women in love with Mexican culture, we recognized the need to turn this product into a glocal one; in other words, it had to contemplate both global and local factors, bringing together traits from both realities.

Solution

The first thing we did was to analyze the brand’s competitive context. In doing so, we realized that the vast majority of competitors aimed at a positioning focused on the relationship they have with the communities that produce this type of clothing, without necessarily making transparent whether it is a fair relationship.

This finding led us to ask ourselves if it was possible to decontextualize the concept of tradition to give a new meaning to this unique product.

We designed a brand that highlights the local and traditional attributes of the huipil and brings them to a current and modern language. We developed an e-commerce that reflects this cultural contrast, with a visual identity that is distinguished by the balance of colors, textures and shapes corresponding to both temporal contexts.

In addition, we were involved in the guidelines of the brand’s photographic style and participated in the design of labels and packaging.

Regarding communications, we structured a language aligned with the brand’s values, with pillars that touch on various topics such as lifestyle, fair trade, history, tradition and curatorship. Finally, we built an Instagram environment for the brand based on this strategy of contrasts.

Impact

  • Identification of a positioning opportunity
  • Matching of positioning with communications
  • Development of an e-commerce that reflects the brand essence

Learning

“Understanding the essence of the project and its cultural context was key to creating a brand that is both respectful of traditions and visionary.”