Alternative Seafood Company OLALA! Seeks to Break Through Ordinary Taste Experiences with New Brand
With great taste comes great opportunity. French alternative seafood start-up OLALA! knows taste is key to success. The team made it its primary message in a new brand design that can take this next generation of plant-based seafood around the globe.
No matter how noble your cause is, consumers will only buy your product repeatedly if they truly like it. When working with the next generation of delicious plant-based seafood, French founders François Blum and Simon Ferniot knew taste was key to success, and still is.

Still, most companies in the plant-based industry only talk about what’s before and after the meal, not what is on the plate and how it tastes. So, when the French team teamed up with Scandinavian consumer branding and design agency Everland, it was looking for a brand to break through ordinary taste experiences. Together, they worked on defining and designing the brand positioning, communication platform, brand activation and visual identity.

“We want to make waves, “ says Simon Ferniot, CEO & Co-founder at OLALA!. “We’re here to challenge the market but do it sustainably. Everland helped build a platform for breaking through the ordinary and creating lasting change for the better.”
From Alternative Food to Taste Experience
OLALA! created a product not just for vegans and vegetarians but for all the gourmet foodies craving seafood. It was essential to encapsulate the taste ambition and express it at every brand touchpoint, even casually mentioning it to your next-door neighbour. The name reflects a well-known feeling–“Oh là là”–indicating a pleasant surprise. All communication builds on great taste and the feeling of eating good seafood.

“When nearly all competitors focus on rationality and sustainability, we focus on the emotional aspects of having a great meal. Desires and tastes make for a much more robust platform”, explains Mads Hauge Lindum, Senior Brand Strategist at Everland.
Inducing the Bistro Vibe
OLALA! is for the foodies. So Everland drew inspiration from the bistro, where foodies tend to meet and mingle. It’s premium yet subtle. It’s active yet understated. Its full-on food appeal puts the meal centre stage. The off-white resembles the tablecloth, the illustrations are golden, up-lifted and outlined, and the logotype reminds you that what you put on your plate is surprisingly good, healthy, and good for the environment.

“OLALA! is about taste in more than one way,” Carl Larsson, Creative Director & Partner at Everland, explains. “It’s about the craft, creativity, and a mouth-watering sensation steaming on your plate. It’s understated confidence, verbally and visually; it’s what’s needed to make change happen.”

So far, OLALA! has six products out, “Salmonderful”, available raw, cooked or smoked, “Tunalicious”, raw or cooked; and “Toramazing”, a plant-based version of the ever famous Greek Tarama. All contain key algae ingredients. More products will soon be launched.