The aim of this case study is to carve out the multilayer role of art for creating zotter chocolate and zotter package design, and accordingly for the brand zotter. Therewith I would like to deepen our understanding of the diverse use/ commitment art can have for every day products like chocolate. To do so, I will handle zotter products as art-works. That means I will not consider art to transport a message, to copy reality or in other words to be an instrument for branding (as the classical branding literature does (cf. Lüddemann, 2007, p. 9 sqq.)), but as an “independent, [autonomous] creative meaning producer” (Lüddemann, 2007, p. 9). Thus I will undertake a thought-experiment by applying a cultural studies perspective to an everyday commodity. I will proceed as follows. Firstly I will define art with an eye to zotter products. The third chapter deals with the question what art means for zotter products. The first sub chapter is about art awarding its own characteristics to a product, namely innovation and prestige. In the second subchapter I discuss art which communicates meaning- and sense offers. This includes the assumptions that art could be a method to stimulate the customer’s reflection, that art could constructs the customer’s perception of reality, that art could connect contradictions and that art could create a multi-sensory experience. Subsequently I summarize what my findings mean for the brands image and the brand per se. Finally I close the paper with a short wrap up and a conclusion.
Table of Contents
1. INTRODUCTION
2. WHAT IS ART?
2.1. zotter products are art because they are created by artists
2.2. zotter products are art because they are said to be art
2.3. zotter products are art because they are treated like art
2.4. zotter products are art because they look like art
2.5. Interim finding
3. THE IMPORTANCE OF ART FOR ZOTTER
3.1. Art awards its own characteristic
3.1.1 Art & innovation
3.1.2 Art & prestige
3.1.3 Interim finding
3.2. Art to communicate general meaning and sense
3.2.1. Art to reflect
3.2.1.1. Art & semiotics
3.2.1.1.1. Environment & organic production
3.2.1.1.2. Human treatment & fair trade production
3.2.2. Interim finding
3.2.3. Art & constructivism
3.2.4. Art to connect contradictions
3.2.5. Art as synaesthetic experience
3.2.6. Interim finding
4. Art to create a brand image
5. Art to create a brand
6. CONCLUSION
Research Objectives and Themes
The primary aim of this case study is to examine the multifaceted role of art in the development of Zotter chocolate products, its package design, and the overall brand identity, utilizing a cultural studies perspective to treat the products as autonomous creative works rather than mere marketing instruments.
- Analysis of art as an independent creator of meaning in consumer goods.
- Evaluation of how art imparts characteristics like innovation and prestige to a brand.
- Exploration of semiotics and metaphor in package design to communicate core values.
- Investigation of multisensory consumer experiences and "embodied imagination."
- Assessment of how art bridges contradictions to strengthen brand recognition.
Excerpt from the Book
Art as synaesthetic experience
Zotter chocolate is made to entice all the customer’s senses at the same time in order to give the consumer an intensive experience of chocolate enjoyment. This, perceiving an object with all five senses simultaneously, is called synaesthesia.
The synaesthetic experience begins when taking the zotter chocolate bar. The chocolate is wrapped in a color-intensive, artistic designed paper (see above). In a second step, the consumer opens the package and encounters the design of the chocolate bar itself, its colors, surface texture, and shape (sight). Opening the package, the consumer will also find a little note with an instruction how to eat chocolate (s. fig. 14).
The consumer breaks a piece of chocolate out of the chocolate bar (hearing) and proceeds on like the little chit suggests (taste, smell, touch):
“If you would like to be a chocolate connoisseur, you should not munch the chocolate, but savour it by letting it melt. Let a piece of chocolate rest for a short time on your tongue, and then stick it to your upper palate. Tickle the chocolate with your tongue, so that it slowly begins to melt. Meanwhile the marvelous chocolate fragrances are set free. Breathe deeply and enjoy! Good chocolate has greater staying power. This means that you will feel the aromas for some time after you have eaten the chocolate. In order to neutralize the taste we advise you to drink some water before tasting another chocolate bar.”
Summary of Chapters
1. INTRODUCTION: Introduces the Zotter company as an innovative Austrian chocolate producer and establishes the focus on using art as a branding strategy.
2. WHAT IS ART?: Defines the conceptual framework for treating Zotter's products as art, based on creation by artists, perception, exhibition, and visual style.
3. THE IMPORTANCE OF ART FOR ZOTTER: Examines how art attributes specific qualities like innovation, prestige, and meaning to the brand while stimulating multisensory engagement.
4. Art to create a brand image: Explores how art contributes to the creation of an artificial, affectively charged brand image through visual vocabularies.
5. Art to create a brand: Concludes that the consistent application of artistic style is essential for long-term brand building and recognition.
6. CONCLUSION: Summarizes that multisensory and art-based branding strategies foster a deeper and more intensive memory of the brand among consumers.
Keywords
Zotter, Art, Branding, Package Design, Innovation, Prestige, Semiotics, Multisensory, Synaesthesia, Cultural Studies, Brand Identity, Consumer Experience, Embodied Imagination, Sustainability, Visual Vocabulary
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental focus of this paper?
The paper explores the role of art in branding, specifically using the Austrian chocolatier Zotter as a case study to understand how artistic design contributes to brand success.
What are the central thematic fields covered?
The work integrates marketing, cultural studies, and aesthetics, focusing on how semiotics, innovation, prestige, and multisensory product design influence consumer perception.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to determine how Zotter uses art not just as a visual tool, but as an independent creator of meaning to enhance its brand image and product perception.
Which scientific method is applied?
The author performs a thought-experiment by applying a cultural studies perspective to everyday commodities, treating Zotter's chocolate and packaging as autonomous art-works.
What topics are discussed in the main body?
The main body covers definitions of art, the transfer of brand characteristics (innovation/prestige), semiotic communication of company values, and the multisensory "synaesthetic" experience of chocolate consumption.
Which keywords characterize this research?
Key terms include Zotter, Branding, Art, Semiotics, Multisensory, Innovation, Brand Image, and Embodied Imagination.
How does Zotter communicate its organic and fair-trade values through art?
The author argues that Zotter uses specific visual cues and metaphors in package design—such as figures wearing "clothing made by nature"—to represent the company’s ecological and altruistic commitment.
Why does the author consider Zotter chocolate a "total work of art"?
It is viewed as a total work of art because the packaging, the product design, and the instructions for consumption are harmonized to create a singular, multisensory experience for the consumer.
- Quote paper
- B.A. Katharina Maute (Author), 2012, The meaning of arts for brands, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/210600
