Sustainable beauty co-op Récolte goes big on branding in Brussels

In Saint-Gilles, a residential corner of Brussels, Ananda Escriva and Franck Laÿs have been quietly laboring over Récolte (French for ‘harvest’), an organic and co-operative skincare brand three years in the making.

Between them, the couple has professional experience in engineering, art and medicine, which is reflected in the meticulousness of the brand’s identity. The packaging of Récolte is fuss-free and simple, yet radiates a sense of nostalgia. Created by the Parisian designer Jean-Philippe Bretin, it makes use of a single colour, a single typeface and a few typographical composition rules.

‘Everything we do, we try to do with as little detailing as possible’, say Escriva and Laÿs. The zesty greenish yellow packaging, printed with a 1980s Letraset version of the 19th century Blackfriars font, is testimony to that way of thinking.

The same simplicity is applied to the balms and oils inside Récolte’s fresh-hued tubes and bottles. For their high-quality unisex organic skincare products, Escriva and Laÿs had one core question in mind: can we do things differently? ‘We are not the owners of Récolte, it's owned by the community’, they explain.

This democratic decision-making process and logistic control results in a high-level of transparency: Escriva and Laÿs know where the raw materials come from and how they are produced, source them in a sustainable and local manner, and work with small-scale organic farmers in Europe.

‘We create products from where we stand; using what’s there’, they say. ‘Using only European raw materials means higher prices, much more complex sourcing and less possibilities, but it pushes us to be more creative.’

INFORMATION

For more information, visit the Récolte website