Starr Hill Brewery

The Brief & Strategic Challenge

Starr Hill, the second-oldest craft brewery in Virginia, had an established identity and strong regional recognition, but the brand needed a fundamental change to compete for new consumers while maintaining the recognition it had built over time. Founded in 1999, the brewery needed a new visual identity and packaging system that could reposition the brand for its next stage of growth.

The challenge was to transform nearly every aspect of the brand while preserving the two elements with the strongest existing recognition: the beer names and Starr Hill’s original red star icon.

Creative Direction & System Design

The new visual identity was built almost entirely from the ground up, retaining only the red star icon and existing beer names. Custom typography replaced the previous type system, while the packaging drew on the texture and styling of vintage rock posters and the Central Virginia landscape to pay homage to the brewery’s location and roots in live music.

Bright, distinct color palettes gave each beer its own visual identity while creating consistency across the portfolio. The new framework extended beyond packaging to tap handles, keg collars, and regional print collateral, giving Starr Hill a consistent visual presence across its physical marketing.

The Outcome

Following the launch, sales of Starr Hill’s flagship beer increased 40%, while overall beer portfolio sales increased 22%. The new identity gave the brewery a more distinctive and flexible visual system across packaging, retail, and regional marketing while preserving the recognition of the original red star icon.