Is rapper Ye (aka Kanye West) the designer of McDonald’s new hamburger boxes? It was a puzzling message on Instagram, but because the sender has a reach of more than 16 million followers and has been seriously involved in design before, the design can be read as a signal that the hamburger giant is thinking about its image and house style. And there’s a lot at stake for McDonald’s, which has poor health and environmental impact ratings.
The square box Ye showed is made of dull brown cardboard, with a transparent strip all around, behind which a sweaty hamburger glistens. In terms of color scheme, it is diametrically opposed to the bright red and gold that McDonald’s is now associated with. How serious is this design, which Ye made in consultation with the Japanese industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa?
‘Ye will mainly be about the buzz,’ says brand strategist Bert de Wit of Positivity Branding. “It would be strange if McDonald’s recently launched new packaging line was once again up for discussion.” And in terms of design it remains guesswork about Ye’s idea.
It has been officially confirmed that McDonald’s and Ye are close. The rapper is a big fan of fast food. In February, he was featured in a McDonald’s commercial during the Super Bowl. ‘Next week it’s the fries’, was his caption on Instagram – the post has already been deleted – a line from Kanye West’s song Gold Digger†
‘A style icon like Ye can mean a lot for your brand,’ says De Wit. The brown box itself scores low with the brand strategist. ‘It seems to be a signal to return to base, what you see is what you get† But as a packaging concept it lacks a promise and message.’ If the statement is of sustainability, it lacks power. Moreover, according to De Wit, a sustainability claim is difficult for McDonald’s. ‘The enormous production of beef is not suddenly less polluting with a new box. A large company must watch out for greenwashing, false ecological claims. That goes against you.’
It seems that McDonald’s is also putting slightly more earthy colors in its packaging. In the new packaging line – which has not yet been introduced in Europe – the red has already been exchanged for earth brown (hamburger), blue green (fish burger) and mustard yellow (cheeseburger). Colors that are closer to natural values. Ye’s post may be an attempt to spark discussion about his favorite fast food chain. Food for thought, in that respect Ye’s post works fine, although it is difficult to determine how constructive it will be.’