Panzani, Rationalist Table

A box with a photo of pasta in a bowl: the code used by most of the pasta aisle in France. Yet Panzani has a real story, started in Lyon in 1949 by an Italian immigrant, that the current pack never tells.

"Rationalist Table": a first route in vintage illustration and terracotta was dropped. That register has become the most overused look of the moment and would not have set the brand apart. The concept turns to Italian graphic rationalism instead: flat colour, geometry, simple icons. Still rooted in the real story, but unlike any other box on the shelf.

Rosso corsa and mustard on cream, with olive used sparingly and a deep ink for text. Archivo Black for the wordmark, Barlow for information. Signature: a geometric icon for every pasta shape: concentric rings for rigatoni, waves for fusilli, a ridged tube for penne. As functional as it is decorative.

Red block, mustard band, cream body: the structure never moves. Only the icon and the shape name change from one reference to the next, which gives the range instant consistency on shelf.

On shelf, boxes side by side turn their icons into a repeating pattern that can be recognised from the end of the aisle, packaging working as retail signage.