Smart & Final Revamps First Street PL

Western warehouse grocer Smart & Final Stores Inc. has completed a revamp of its First Street private label’s packaging to create a “synonymous relationship” between itself and the brand’s offerings while allowing each category to have its own design identity.

Created by San Francisco-based packaging design agency Voicebox Creative, the new look is said to reflect Smart & Final’s commitment to quality and community via an approachable yet distinguishable diamond-shaped design that further incorporates the brand’s touchpoints through classic colors and fonts, along with a Main Street backdrop. Created years ago, the brand’s name references the days when grocery stores existed on every American town’s Main Street.

Smart & Final applied the new design system to 2,500 SKUs across all aisles and categories, with more than 200 First Street products bearing the new design already on shelves. The initiative also included the transition of Smart & Final’s Tradewinds Spices & Seasonings to the First Street label, first revealed earlier this year, which added 140 new SKUs to the First Street label and streamlined inventory to provide customers with “high-quality products at the right price,” VP of Corporate Procurement Raymond Swain said at the time.

“Voicebox carefully considered a variety of factors, from brand expression, consistency and flexibility to shopability and shelf impact, when developing a look that was representative of First Street and Smart & Final’s values,” noted Jacques Rossouw, creative director for Voicebox. “Our versatility in design and deep experience in complex CPG label systems resulted in an ownable and differentiated look that successfully communicates First Street’s quality, heritage and commitment to community across multiple product lines.”

Based in Commerce, Calif., Smart & Final operates 316 grocery and foodservice stores under the Smart & Final, Smart & Final Extra, and Cash & Carry Smart Foodservice banners in California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, Montana and Utah, with an additional 15 stores in northwestern Mexico operated through a joint venture.