Oriental Brewery showcases 27 years of Cass beer evolution, innovation
Changes in Cass beer's label design over the years / Courtesy of OB
By Kim Jae-heun
Over the past 80 years, Oriental Brewery (OB) brand has been synonymous with beer among consumers in Korea. The brewer has been making endless efforts to be the premier beer maker in the country.
OB's steady-seller beer, Cass, in particular, has been continuously improved by reflecting consumer feedback and the latest market trends. Recently, OB renewed the entire packaging of the beer label to look cooler and more appealing.
Cass has been the best-selling brand in the local beer market since 2012. Last year, OB accounted for a 52.7 percent share of the domestic beer market and Cass accounted for 39.5 percent.
Last month, OB introduced the “All New Cass” featuring new packaging and brewing method.
Cass beer posters / Courtesy of OB
Since its launch in 1994, Cass has undergone several transformations both in its taste and packaging design.
But it never lost its signature fresh and cool taste and added new flavors reflecting consumer feedback collected in surveys.
The product's packaging has also been upgraded over time with different concepts. In 2016, Cass adopted silver and blue colors to its label, emphasizing dynamism and a challenging spirit. A year later, the Cass logo was embossed on the shoulder position of the bottle to make the design look more sophisticated while adopting a V-shaped label on the bottle.
The renewed design received positive feedback from the market.
Cass has been carrying out various marketing activities by adopting slogans like “The sound of me alive” and “Confront it, be thrilled,” to appeal to younger customers.
All New Cass beer / Courtesy of OB
The brewer created an ad campaign featuring the daily lives of young people. It also hired hip-hop musicians and other young models, while holding advertising contests targeting young participants.
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, OB focused on online marketing. It held a virtual music festival called “Cass Blue Playground Connect 2.0” that gathered over 80,000 people from around the world simultaneously.
For the All New Cass, OB decided to use a transparent glass bottle to offer a cleaner design and let consumers see the alcoholic beverage inside. The bottle's shape has also been altered to give off a more sophisticated image.
The brewer did not change the recipe for Cass, but upgraded the brewing technology by maturing the beer at a low temperature of 0 degrees Celsius for 72 hours to give it a fresh taste.
There is a small hexagon-shaped thermometer attached to the beer label that turns bright blue along with the word "Fresh" when the brew is served ice-cold. OB applied the technology to let customers know the best time to drink the beer.