Magic Spoon Cereal -

Have you seen Magic Spoon cereal at the store? I saw these colorful boxes at Target. This brand is different from the other breakfast cereals—its uniquely crafted package makes it stand out in the cereal aisle.

Eye-catching

Each Magic Spoon flavor has a different illustration on the box made up of modern, fanciful characters. The artwork is completely unexpected, especially when compared to the styles of other cereal boxes. Some of the flavor examples include Peanut Butter, which features an elephant and a whimsical purple person; Cinnamon has a cowboy riding a dinosaur (or alligator?); and Cocoa shows an astronaut with a companion dog. The boxes are decorated with floating pieces of cereal, and each character is holding a spoon. It’s a visual delight.

Typography

The Magic Spoon logo appears to be a custom typeface with sanserif and serif combined. The “M” and “N” are curvy and remind me of NASA’s lettering. The logo is prominently displayed at the top left of each box as the cornerstone. The right side of the package has a large point size, which strongly communicates the primary nutritional info—total sugars, net carbs, and grams of protein. I’m guessing this is the same custom style as the logo. (Note: many brands create their unique custom typefaces.)

Crafted by design experts

The design team at Gander Inc. used bright colors and fun language to carve out a unique brand space Google noted: “As the creative director of Magic Spoon, Dhiya Choudary works closely with talented designers and illustrators, including Levi Jacobs, Juan Molinet, Rick Berkelmans (HEDOF), and Alina Bohoru to bring the brand’s magical characters and eye-catching packaging designs to life.”

Podcast interview

I’m a devoted listener of “How I Built This” podcast with Guy Raz and was eager to hear the interview with founders Gabi Lewis and Greg Sewitz. It’s a great story! Lewis and Sewitz said, Magic Spoon is a “breakfast cereal that tasted like the Fruit Loops and Cocoa Puffs of my childhood minus the sugar and grains.” All of the cereals are high protein, low carb, gluten-free, and keto-friendly. Magic Spoon is a national brand that competes with Post, General Mills, Kellogg, etc.

The podcast didn’t delve into the price. This premium cereal is very expensive—a lot more than the other cereals—at $9.99 retail.

Finally

Packaging design is not currently in my wheelhouse. My specialty is book design. However, I have an appreciation for excellent design and illustration. Magic Spoon’s artwork is, well, magical!

P.S. Competing with Magic Spoon is another new specialty cereal brand called “Off Limits” with names like “Fluf N Puf,” “Flex,” and “Spark.“ It, too, has a similar design style with unique illustrations and bold colors. But, in my opinion, the artwork is not as strong or refined (detailed) as Magic Spoon’s.