Food Packaging Design

Food packaging design for ambitious food, drink and FMCG brands.

I’m Dave, an award-winning freelance packaging designer based in Leeds and London, UK. I specialise in creating distinctive, commercially focused packaging design for food, drink, wellness and FMCG brands.

With over 10 years of experience in graphic design, branding and packaging design, I work with startups, challenger brands and established companies to create packaging that looks distinctive, communicates clearly and works in the real world.

Whether you're launching a new food product, refreshing an existing range or developing packaging for a growing brand, I can help take your packaging from initial creative direction through to finished artwork.

Food Packaging Design

As a food packaging designer, I work with many food and drink brands and emerging startups in lot’s of different categories in the food and beverage space. My design experience covers a diverse range of clients, and sectors, working with companies both large and small. Being a fully remote freelance packaging designer also gives me the freedom to work with clients all around the UK, and beyond.

Food Packaging Design That Gets Your Brand Noticed

Packaging has to do more than look good.

It needs to communicate what your product is, attract attention, work within its category and help customers understand why they should choose it.

I create food packaging that balances brand identity, creativity and commercial purpose, helping products stand out on shelves, online and across every customer touchpoint.

From a single product launch to a complete packaging range, I can develop a visual approach that gives your products a consistent and recognisable presence.

My packaging design experience covers everything from food and beverages to health, wellness and FMCG products.

If you're looking for a designer who can consider the wider brand as well as the packaging itself, you can also explore my branding design service page.

Food & Drink Packaging Design Services

Every packaging design project is different, so I tailor the design process around your brand, products, audience and requirements.

New Product Packaging

Launching a new food or drink product?

I can develop the packaging design from the initial creative direction through to final production artwork, creating a visual identity that gives your product the best possible start.

Where required, I can also develop the wider brand identity and logo design alongside the packaging.

Packaging Rebrands & Refreshes

If your existing packaging feels outdated, inconsistent or isn't connecting with your target audience, I can refresh or completely redesign the packaging while considering existing brand recognition.

The aim is to create packaging that feels more relevant to your customers while retaining the elements that already make your brand recognisable.

Packaging Range & SKU Design

For brands with multiple products, I can develop a consistent packaging system that works across different flavours, formats, products and variants while allowing each SKU to remain distinctive.

This creates a recognisable visual system that can grow as your product range expands.

Food & Beverage Label Design

I design labels and packaging graphics for a wide range of food and drink products, creating layouts that balance brand communication, product information and visual impact.

Branding & Packaging Design

If you're launching a new brand, packaging can be developed alongside the wider brand identity to create a consistent visual system across your products, website and marketing.

For businesses that need a complete visual identity, see my branding designer service.

Packaging Artwork

Once the creative direction has been approved, I can prepare professional artwork for production, working from supplied specifications, cutter guides and printer requirements.

Packaging Designed for Real-World Retail

Good packaging needs to work beyond the design presentation.

I've worked on packaging and branding for products intended for ecommerce, independent retailers and established UK retail environments.

My experience includes brands sold through or associated with retailers including:

Marks & Spencer · Booths · Harrods · Selfridges · Holland & Barrett · Planet Organic · Whole Foods · Amazon

This understanding helps me design packaging with the realities of the marketplace in mind — from shelf impact and product hierarchy to consistency across a growing product range.

Whether your products are sold online, through independent retailers or you're working towards larger retail distribution, the packaging needs to communicate quickly and effectively.

What Types of Food Packaging Do I Design?

I work across a broad range of food, drink and consumer product categories, including:

• Food and beverage

• Snacks

• Bakery

• Confectionery

• Condiments and sauces

• Ambient food

• Fresh and ready meals

• Frozen food

• Coffee and tea

• Soft drinks and beverages

• Alcoholic drinks

• Health and wellness products

• Supplements

• FMCG and CPG products

If your product category isn't listed above, get in touch and we can discuss your requirements.

For a broader overview of my packaging capabilities, visit my freelance packaging designer page.

My Food Packaging Design Process

Great packaging design starts with understanding the product, the customer and the market.

1. Discovery & Research

We start by understanding your brand, product, audience, competitors and objectives. This helps establish the creative direction before design begins.

2. Creative Direction

I explore visual territories, references, typography, colour and graphic styles to establish a clear creative direction for your packaging.

3. Packaging Concept Development

I develop original custom packaging design concepts designed around your brand strategy and the way your product needs to compete within its category.

4. Refinement

Once a creative direction has been selected, we refine the design through collaborative feedback and develop the packaging into a polished final design solution.

5. Range Development

Where required, the approved design can be developed across multiple products, flavours, sizes or SKUs while maintaining a consistent and recognisable brand system.

6. Final Artwork

The finished packaging design is prepared for print using the required specifications, including artwork layouts, print files, cutter-guides and relevant final packaging elements.

You can find out more about my wider approach on my Design Process page.

Packaging Design for Startups & Established Brands

I work with businesses at different stages of growth.

Startups & New Brands

Launching your first product? I can help develop packaging that gives your brand a professional, distinctive presence from day one.

This can include branding, logo design and packaging design, creating a joined-up visual identity from the beginning.

If you're a food or drink startup looking for a complete visual identity, I can combine logo design with packaging design and wider brand development.

Growing & Challenger Brands

If you're expanding your product range or entering new markets, I can develop packaging systems that allow your brand to grow while maintaining consistency.

This can include new SKUs, product variants, flavour extensions and packaging adaptations across different formats.

Established Brands

If your packaging needs refreshing, repositioning or extending across a new range, I can work within your existing brand guidelines or help evolve the visual identity where appropriate.

Why Work With a Freelance Packaging Designer?

Working directly with a freelance designer means you deal with the person responsible for your project from start to finish.

I bring together experience across packaging design, branding, logo design and graphic design, allowing me to consider the wider brand rather than treating the packaging as an isolated piece of artwork.

With over 10 years of design experience, I understand that effective packaging needs to combine creativity with practical considerations such as production, print, consistency and scalability.

My approach is collaborative, strategic and tailored to each project.

If you're interested in how I approach projects from the initial brief through to completion, you can read more about my design process.

How Can I Help With Your Packaging design Project?

I can help if you're:

• Launching a new food or drink brand

• Developing your first product

• Refreshing existing packaging

• Rebranding an established food business

• Expanding a product range

• Developing multiple SKUs

• Moving into retail

• Looking for packaging that better reflects your brand

• Looking for a packaging designer who can also handle branding and identity

Whether you need packaging for one product or a complete range, we can discuss your requirements and develop a solution around your brand and objectives.

If you're looking for a wider packaging design service, you can explore my freelance packaging design service page.

Food Packaging Design FAQs

How much does food packaging design cost?

The cost of a packaging design project depends on factors such as the number of products or SKUs, packaging formats, the level of creative development required and whether branding is included.

I provide bespoke proposals based on the requirements of each project rather than using a one-size-fits-all price.

What does food packaging design include?

Depending on your requirements, a packaging project can include creative direction, packaging concepts, typography, colour, graphic elements, layouts, range development and final production artwork.

I can also incorporate branding and logo design where you're launching a new product or brand.

Can you design packaging for a new food startup?

Yes. I regularly work with startups and emerging brands, helping them develop packaging that gives their products a professional and distinctive presence.

If you're launching a new food or drink brand, I can also help with branding and logo design alongside the packaging.

Can you redesign existing food packaging?

Yes. I can refresh or completely redesign existing packaging depending on your objectives.

The process can retain important elements of existing brand recognition while introducing a more contemporary and effective visual direction.

Can you design packaging for multiple products?

Yes. I can create packaging systems that work across multiple products, flavours, sizes or SKUs.

The aim is to create consistency across the range while giving individual products enough differentiation to be easily understood.

Do you prepare print-ready packaging artwork?

Yes. Once the packaging design has been approved, I can prepare final artwork according to the required specifications, cutter guides and printer requirements.

Can you work with my printer or packaging manufacturer?

Yes. I'm happy to work from specifications supplied by your printer, packaging manufacturer or production partner and can prepare artwork accordingly.

Do you also provide branding and logo design?

Yes. Packaging is often much more effective when it is developed alongside the wider brand identity.

I provide logo design and branding design services for businesses that need a complete visual identity.

Do you work with UK food and drink brands?

Yes. I'm a UK-based freelance designer working with food, drink, wellness and FMCG brands across the UK and internationally.

I'm based in Leeds and London and work with clients remotely throughout the UK.

How do I start a packaging design project?

Get in touch with some information about your brand, product, packaging requirements, timeline and budget.

We'll discuss your project during an initial consultation before I prepare a tailored quote.

Get in touch

Ready to elevate or launch your food and drink brand?…Whether you're launching a new food product, refreshing an existing range or developing packaging for a growing brand, I'd love to hear about your project.

If you would like to discuss a particular branding, graphic design, packaging design or web design project, just fill in the form below and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Please check your spam/junk folder, if you don’t get a reply within 48 hours. Thanks.

Feel free to also call me on
+44 (0) 7545 035 147

Looking for a Food and drink Packaging Designer and ready to discuss your design project?