NOTPLA | Making Packaging Disappear | 2020
A Logo That Disappears, A Package That Disappears / Notpla "Making Packaging Disappear"
"Notpla" is short for "not plastic." That alone tells you what they're trying to do. It's edible packaging made from seaweed. And the brand itself won the Grand Prix in the Design category at Cannes.
The problem
Eight million tons of plastic flow into the ocean every year. Plenty of companies call themselves "bioplastic," but a lot of the time it's still basically plastic underneath. Notpla's two founders met in London and started the company in 2014, searching for a material that would truly return to nature. Their seaweed-based material breaks down into soil in four to six weeks, and you can even eat it.
The insight
In a crowded bioplastic market, explaining "what it is" just gets lost in the noise. So Notpla decided to define itself by what it's NOT. Not plastic. Not PLA. Their mission is "making packaging disappear" — and that one phrase carries the whole brand.
The idea
The logo acts out that idea directly. It's shaped like a container, but its outline only appears when it's filled with water or some other content. Once it's empty, the outer shape vanishes — a logo that doesn't even work as a still image. They turned the paradox of "packaging that only exists when it's full" into the literal face of the brand.
What happened
Made in 2020, it won the Grand Prix in the Design category at Cannes 2021 (sharing the award with H&M's "Looop"). It went on to win at the Earthshot Prize and led to partnerships with major brands.
Afterthought
Describing your brand by what it isn't is usually something you'd avoid. But for Notpla, there was no other way to say it. Every time I watch that logo vanish, I can't help imagining a future where packaging actually disappears for real.
Awards
- Cannes Lions Grand Prix 2020
