Martin|Williams Advertising brews new designs for Finnegans cans

Finnegans, a Minnesota-based brewing company that donates 100 percent of its profits to alleviate hunger, is for the first time offering its locally crafted beverages in cans designed by Martin|Williams Advertising, a full-service brand activism agency.

Stemming from the original look of the Finnegans beer bottle, Martin|Williams mimicked the clean and simple design that’s recognizable of the Irish brew for its new cans. The cans have a retro feel due to the exposed aluminum underneath the badge logo, while exuding eye-catching rings of color to differentiate its two signature products, Blonde Ale and Irish Amber.

Martin|Williams also created the packing for the new cans. Similar to the brewery’s bottle casing, the can’s packaging will showcase the badge logo on top of a sleek white background for an eye-catching box in retail establishments. To promote the new container that Finnegans is available in, Martin|Williams created posters tagged with cheeky copy such as “now floating in a cooler near you.”

“Finnegans is always a great client to work with as they aren’t afraid to have some fun with their creative direction and the cans were no different,” said Tom Moudry, president and chief creative officer at Martin|Williams. “With an old-school look, we aimed to keep a simplistic design to the cans so that we could draw the focus to the good hearted work the brewery does for our community. The humorous flare of the Finnegans brand was then able to shine though on all the promotion posters and swag that we worked on to launch the new cans into the market.”

In addition to the cans, Martin|Williams is helping Finnegans gear up for the 2013 Minnesota C.H. Robinson MS 150 Ride by designing the official ride kit and bike. Donated by One on One Bike Studio, the bicycle is decaled with custom Finnegans’ graphics and a one-of-a-kind bike seat imprinted with the infamous haloed shamrock. The ride kit is designed to outfit each participant in Finnegans gear including socks, cycling bib shorts and a jersey. Noticeable from afar, the uniform incorporates the official Finnegans green color scheme with a playful graphic printed the back of the jersey of two beer bottles situated in pockets.

Finnegans’ goal is to have 150 team members for the 2013 MS 150 Ride and those interested in joining can sign up here. Cans of Finnegans Blonde Ale and Irish Amber are now available to purchase at retail establishments.