Whisky bottle to target women

Published on 24/06/2012 03:34

IT IS typically seen as a man’s drink to enjoy straight up or on the rocks, but now the fairer sex is being invited to make whisky their favourite tipple.

A whisky bottle has been designed especially to appeal to women, with the next step being to find a company to manufacture the product to fill it.

Edinburgh Napier University student Melissa Preston, 22, came up with the idea of female-friendly packaging for a whisky bottle in an attempt to break away from the drink’s macho mould.

Shaped like a wine bottle and wrapped in singles ads, her design plays on whisky tasting notes and presents the bottle as a male character seeking a female.

“I really enjoy whisky but it is a drink steeped in male connotations,” said the graphic design student, whose own love of the national drink inspired her to design female-friendly packaging.

“I wanted to break away from the macho image without being too girly or clichéd. By looking at dating adverts in newspapers I saw how, in quite a tongue in cheek way, the description and language used by ‘men seeking women’ could be compared to the way a whisky is often described.

“The design is simple and instant. It doesn’t scream of branding and entices the customer in for a closer look. Reshaping the bottle will hopefully encourage women to reach for a bottle of whisky instead of their usual pinot grigio.”

A spokeswoman for the university said the next step would be to find a whisky company to create a product to fit the bottle.

Preston’s design has been nominated for a Yellow Pencil prize at the prestigious D&AD student awards, which take place in London this week.