Opinion BY Armin

Mall of America Gets Wrapped Up

Opened to the public in 1992 in the suburb of Bloomington in Minneapolis near the Twin Cities, the Mall of America (MOA) is he United States’ largest retail and entertainment complex as a 4.87 million square foot structure sitting in a plot of land 78 acres big — either 7 baseball stadiums or 32 Boeing 747s would fit inside. Attracting 42 million visitors annually, MOA houses 520 shops, an indoor amusement park with 27 rides, an indoor aquarium, a 14-screen movie theater, and even a chapel that weds over 300 couples every year. In other words: it’s big, it’s bombastic, and, um, it’s big. Yesterday, MOA introduced its new identity designed by Minneapolis-based Duffy & Partners.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Summit Brewing Company

About: (Est. 1986) “Summit Brewing Company has stayed close to its roots, serving the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes region. Summit’s beers are currently available in 17 states including Minnesota, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas and Wisconsin. Summit now produces 12 varieties of premium craft beer, including seven year-round, four seasonal beers, and the limited release Unchained Series. Since its inception, the brewery has been a consistent pioneer in the craft beer movement.”

Design by: Duffy & Partners.

Ed.’s Notes: Bigger view of the logo below (or after the jump).

Relevant links: Press release. Star Tribune story.

Provided quote: “Summit’s new look is an evolution of the brand’s past two logos, a brand expression that authentically reflects Summit’s unique craft. Duffy’s goal is to express the Summit name so that it punctuates the pictorial idea of an actual summit. This in-turn leverages the equity of the diamond shape that has been the hallmark of the Summit logo from the beginning. Summit Avenue, a vein running through the heart of St. Paul can be seen in the interpretation of a street sign which honors the local community and the heart of this hometown brand.”

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Opinion BY Armin

Plaid Beer

Established in 1997 and located in Cooperstown, NY, Brewery Ommegang specializes in Belgian-style ales, including BPA, Hennepin, wheat, and amber ales among other regular and seasonal brews. Brewery Ommegang is owned by Belgian brewer Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat and is distributed throughout the U.S. and in some European countries. They recently introduced a new look designed by Minneapolis, MN-based Duffy & Partners and the newly packaged product will be available for purchase in early Fall of 2012.

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Opinion BY Armin

Sun Rises in Hillshire

Established in 1939, Sara Lee Corporation is a global manufacturer and marketer of consumer brands that span coffee, tea, and meats and include the eponymous Sara Lee (deli and desserts), Jimmy Dean, Douwe Egberts, and Hillshire Farms. Earlier this month Sara Lee announced that it would be splitting the company into two “pure-play” companies — each focusing on a single category of products — the first to be renamed Hillshire Brands taking over the North America production of meat-centric food products and foodservice operations while D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 (all caps!) will focus on international coffee and tea. The focus of this post is on Hillshire Brands; logo for D.E is noted for reference at the end of the post. The new logo was designed by Minneapolis, MN-based Duffy & Partners.

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A B-Side BY Armin

Society for Rational Dress

First launched in 2002, Society for Rational Dress is the fashion label of designer Corinne Grassini. The new logo, garment tags, lookbook, and stationery have been designed by Duffy & Partners (more images at that link).

Opinion BY Armin

People for Water for People

Working continually in eleven countries — Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Malawi, Rwanda, Uganda, and India — and providing support to more than forty countries throughout its nearly twenty years in operation, Water for People “helps people in developing countries improve quality of life by supporting the development of locally sustainable drinking water resources, sanitation facilities, and hygiene education programs.” A big part of the Denver-based organization’s focus is not just establishing new facilities or resources, but making sure they keep working and are self-sufficient years later. This past March, Water for People introduced a new logo designed by Duffy & Partners.

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