Nine students from the BA (Hons) Graphic Design and BA (Hons) Illustration courses were recognised by Brief Cases, an annual competition that aims to bridge the gap between academia and industry. The challenge set for second-year students was to create a special edition gift pack for confectionary packaging that stood out on shelves, reflected luxury branding, and integrated sustainability.
Abbie Lyndon, a Graphic Design student, and Erin Brooke, an Illustration student, both secured gold awards. Abbie's 'Love Letters' concept encourages Gen Z to reconnect offline by pairing a personal letter with a gift of chocolate, inspired by concerns about youth loneliness and online time. Abbie described the experience as 'eye-opening', learning new skills in designing physical mock-ups, screenprinting, and vinyl labelling.
Fellow gold winner Erin's project, 'Mile & Moss', features a luxury dark chocolate truffle collection that highlights the importance of protecting wildlife and natural habitats. Erin connected the collection to WWF UK, exploring sustainably sourced and recycled paper samples from Antalis. She stated that working to a live industry brief was a 'valuable experience' that encouraged experimentation and wider thinking.
“"Winning a gold award feels amazing, especially knowing that my work has been judged by industry professionals. As a student, you spend so much time developing, questioning, and refining your ideas, so to have that work recognised at this level is extremely rewarding."
The judging panel included representatives from packaging specialist Antalis and chocolate manufacturer Kinnerton Chocolate. Other recognised students included silver award winners Kate Forrester and Hannah Thorley, bronze winner Sorren Nichol, and highly commended students Charlotte Brown, Jake Clapham, Libby Bracknall, and Luke Blench.
The winners have been invited to visit the Antalis Smart Packaging showroom in Leicester. Brian Webb, chair of the judging panel, commented on the 'competent overall standard' and the 'real wit and confidence' displayed in the strongest entries, finding it 'genuinely encouraging' to see such a high level of thinking from students early in their careers.
