I was contacted by the founder of Bread & Butter Pickleball Co. to help brand their first-ever foam core paddle. Bread & Butter is known for its fun, colorful branding across its paddle lineup, as well as a humorous online presence, so I was thrilled and honored to be asked to work on such an exciting project.
The client’s vision was to maintain the loud, playful energy of their previous paddles while introducing a more “badass” attitude, reflecting that this would be their hardest-hitting paddle to date thanks to the new foam-core technology. With the name “Loco” already established, I was given a loose direction centered around a bandito theme. From there, I developed the graphics and packaging with an old Western movie influence, using the color palette and imagery to reinforce that aesthetic.
I wanted the paddle to subtly reference an actual pistol through both the colorway and the packaging design. The goal was to create an unboxing experience that felt powerful and dramatic, as if you were getting your hands on a tool built to dominate your opponent, while still staying true to the playful and bold Bread & Butter personality.
