Perfecting the label with Rock Paper Rum

Rock Paper Rum was founded by Lalit Kalani in October 2022 after three years of planning. Originally from Mumbai, Kalani moved to the US for higher education and spent 18 years there. In 2011, he launched Bandar Foods in the US, specializing in Indian-inspired snacks and sauces. He returned to India in 2020 and was so inspired by the country's booming liquor industry that he decided to start a liquor brand. With over five decades of family experience in the liquor business, Kalani was well-prepared to make his mark in the industry.  

The brand’s triple-distilled rum is handcrafted in small batches, delivering spiced notes with a playful, punchy character. Made from sugarcane, a staple of India, Rock Paper Rum blends tradition with innovation and whlile offering a quality product.  The bottles for the brand are outsourced. 

‘The challenge was to stand out in a market flooded with standard bottle designs. We opted for a distinctive bottle shape, investing in its design to ensure uniqueness from day one,’ Kalani says.

Our current label incorporates small elements like the hand symbols for Rock Paper Rum written in Hindi. This small detail helps convey the handcrafted nature of our product while maintaining a premium look at an affordable price point

The brand’s labels were designed by First Base packaging design agency based in Gurgaon, India run by a designer who had worked with large brands.

‘We had bottle shapes ready, but there's a long story behind the labels,’ Kalani begins.

He was about to launch the brand in early 2022 with the first version of packaging and labels, but ‘something did not feel right’.

‘We then delayed its entire launch by almost nine months because we didn't feel that everything had come together,’ he states.

He started by sharing the values of his brand with the designers at First Base. 

‘Rock Paper Rum blends Indian cultural elements with a bold, risk-taking spirit inspired by the game Rock Paper Scissors. Our flagship product, Indian Spiced Rum, captures this spirit of adventure. Balancing traditional Indian heritage with a modern twist was essential in shaping our brand concept.’

The labels were much simpler in design. They did not represent the brand story Kalani wanted to convey. ‘Our current label does this effectively, incorporating small elements like the hand symbols for Rock Paper Rum written in Hindi. This small detail helps convey the handcrafted nature of our product while maintaining a premium look at an affordable price point. Previously, we felt we were doing an injustice to the brand story by not having that reflected on the label,’ he explains.

The biggest challenge stemmed from the product's price point. The brand had to ensure that production and label costs were aligned with this pricing. The product is neither high-end nor inexpensive, so finding the right balance was crucial. ‘How do you create something without all the bells and whistles, yet still make it look and feel premium? Achieving this balance while keeping costs in mind was our major challenge,’ Kalani highlights.

The quality of the product is crucial, but the first impression is based on its appearance. Making the product stand out visually was essential, especially in the rum category, which has seen little innovation, Kalani says. Although a large category, this lack of innovation presented an opportunity to introduce something different for Rock Paper Rum. 

‘When we launched, there were not many brands that looked appealing, giving us a chance to stand out from legacy and older brands. This approach resonated well with our target segment, particularly millennials, who appreciate unique and cool designs,’ he adds.

Creating the perfect label

The packaging agency connected the brand with a couple of converters and the brand also reached out to production partners. Initially, the brand worked with a converter in Mumbai and has since worked with a few more. 

The brand led the decision-making discussions, including pricing, but the design agency was also involved in ensuring accurate color matching between the digital designs and the physical product. This seemingly simple task required careful comparison of Pantone swatches, which all looked very similar to the untrained eye. The initial process involved going back and forth.   Fortunately, the production house was only 15 minutes from where Kalani was staying in Mumbai, allowing for frequent in-person visits to oversee the printing process.

The white rum label was designed in a way that allowed for future variations to use the same template, with only the color combinations changing

During these visits, he ensured the colors matched and made adjustments, such as increasing the whiteness of the font when it appeared too fine and not white enough.

‘Our emblem seal, and the word “handcrafted” and Rock Paper Rum in Hindi features fine gold foiling, including a rope design on the border of the label that says "small batch." While the design looked great on the computer, translating it into production posed challenges. We had to sit down, produce a few samples, and make adjustments during the initial attempts.’ Kalani explains.

‘During the initial attempts, there was a push and pull between the agency, which wanted the design to match exactly as it was on paper, and the label converter, which faced challenges in translating it. I had to ensure everything progressed smoothly despite these differences. These technicalities, which might seem simple at first, truly make a difference in the final outcome.’

When choosing the right print partner, the brand had specific criteria in mind due to the competition in the industry. 

‘Initially, we chose one for its convenience and proximity, knowing it would require hands-on supervision. Being close allowed me to oversee the process, which involved several visits. Once the first run was successful, replication became easier. After that, cost, quality and market reputation became our primary considerations. Now, we have developed relationships with a couple of vendors, focusing on quality and turnaround times,’ Kalani says.

Finding the right balance

As a startup brand, Rock Paper Rum cannot hold too much label inventory, but it also can't hold too little. 

‘Initially, we produced short runs because we were not sure how things would go. Now, we do slightly longer runs. While we are not a large company, we are no longer doing the short runs like we did initially,’ the founder says.

The brand uses both flexo and digital printing, depending on its products. Some of its products have surpassed a certain volume threshold and their labels runs have moved to flexo printing. New, experimental flavors, which require shorter runs, are still printed digitally.

Sustainability

Sustainability is crucial for Kalani and his background reflects that passion.

Four years before starting Rock Paper Rum, he worked for a sustainable packaging company based in the US, leading sales for Europe and Asia, which brought him back to India.

‘I have been deeply involved in the sustainable packaging space, producing compostable packaging products made from agro-waste. Currently, I serve as an advisor and investor in an Indian sustainability startup that produces sustainable and compostable packaging products from agro-waste, such as bags. Sustainability remains a core focus for me,’ Kalani adds.

While it is not our primary selling point right now, it will be an important focus as our brand grows. We are considering various sustainable options, such as compostable inks and paper

In the alcohol industry, where the brand is just starting out, sustainability will become more prominent over time. 

‘While it is not our primary selling point right now, it will be an important focus as our brand grows. We are considering various sustainable options, such as compostable inks and paper. If the paper is not plastic-coated, it can be compostable. We are exploring eco-friendly and compostable inks, although we have not delved deeply into this yet. In our sustainable packaging business, we are also looking at compostable and food-grade inks. The knowledge we gain from this will hopefully be applied to Rock Paper Rum in the future,’ Kalani explains. 

Planning and designing for future success

Sharing insights from his experience, Kalani says that when working with an agency or designer, being clear about a brand’s needs and beliefs upfront can save time and prevent unnecessary changes.

‘Gather as much information as possible, such as the size of the bottle, the size of the panel, and all mandatory requirements, from the start. Making changes later increases the time and cost. It is also crucial to communicate any budget restrictions for packaging so the designer or agency can create something that fits within those limits,’ he says.
Considering both future and current needs in mind helps create a design process that is efficient and is adaptable with time.  

For instance, when Rock Paper Rum started, it launched spiced and a white rum variants, with the goal of adding more variants after two years, assuming the initial test was successful. By informing the designer of long-term plans, the brand made the spiced rum its flagship premium product.

‘The white rum label was designed in a way that allowed for future variations to use the same template, with only the color combinations changing. This template approach meant we did not have to redesign from scratch for each new variant. By providing a vision for the future, we streamlined the process and avoided repeatedly going back to the drawing board,’ Kalani concludes.