麥傑廣告創意總監陳進東，擁有超過20年的品牌策略及設計經驗，近年來他將業務觸角延伸至中國，並成為當地茶品包裝的佼佼者，究竟為中國市場做茶品包裝，需要考量哪些面向？

Magic Creative director James Chen has over 20 years of experience in branding strategy and design. In recent years, he has expanded his business into China, becoming one of the top firms designing tea packaging in the region. What needs to be considered when designing tea packaging for the Chinese market? What aspects of Chinese tea packaging design are unique?

陳進東表示，中國幅員廣大，華北、華中、華南的文化、美學觀點就有很大的差異，一般城市和上海、北京這種大都會又不一樣，「因此，你必須先了解你的客戶是在哪個區域，未來商品又要銷售到哪個區域，先弄清楚這塊，再來談設計，這是很重要的。」

As Chen notes, China is vast. The culture differs greatly between northern, southern, and central China, as do perspectives on beauty. In addition, people living in smaller cities often have a standard of beauty that is different from that held by residents in Beijing and Shanghai. “You first need to understand the region in which your customer is located, and then the products you create must target customers in that region. Before you can start a discussion about design, these factors must be clear. This is very important.”

以他多年和中國客戶合作的經驗，陳進東說，中國人有獨特的送禮文化，其中又特別喜愛送茶葉，以茶品包裝為例，他指出，中國人喜愛用大紅、大金來代表大器、尊容感，這可能是來自古代皇帝愛用金色的傳統，過於簡約的設計反倒不愛。他表示，這時候大量和客戶溝通就顯得很重要，而在溝通前，他們會做很多市場研究，來為品牌定位，「透過先理解他們送禮的文化，然後重新在視覺和策略上操作，讓客戶感受到不見得大紅、大金就代表尊容。精緻感是可以從很多細節面呈現出來的，我覺得我們可以create(創造)一個潮流，而不是follow(追隨)潮流，包裝不是外表的美感，而是裡面的靈魂。」

Chen notes that a unique culture of “gifting" is commonplace in Chinese society, an insight that years of experience dealing with Chinese customers has granted him. Tea leaves are an especially popular gift. When it comes to tea packaging, he says, Chinese people prefer strong, dominant colors like red and gold that they believe portray feelings of glamor, elegance, luxury, and respect. The popularity of the color gold may be influenced by the value placed on the hue by ancient Chinese emperors and empresses, Chen suggests. If the design is too plain, too simple, it is usually not well liked. He also notes that ample communication with customers is key: to properly define the brand and product, the Magic Creative team will thoroughly research the market. “First you have to understand China’s ‘gifting’ culture, and only then can you move onto visuals and strategies. You have to help the customer to understand that red and gold don’t always represent what they think the colors represent. Sophisticated elegance can be presented in many ways; I think we can create a trend, and not follow a trend. Packaging is not about outer beauty, but about presenting the soul within.”

陳進東進一步說明，他們有許多客戶來自廣東武夷山，光是武夷山就有25萬家茶行，甚至有整條街都在賣茶品包裝。「其實大陸的茶品包裝已經很有水準，但台灣的優勢就在於我們能夠透過品牌的前端探索去找出文化的意涵和深度。茶葉不僅只是茶而已，茶代表了華人文化，這裡面包含你的生活、信仰、語言，甚至儒家道家思想，都融入在茶文化裡面。如何將我們理解的茶文化成功轉換成視覺上的包裝，就是關鍵所在。」

James Chen notes that a lot of his customers live in Wuyi Mountain in China’s Guangdong Province. The region is home to up to 250,000 tea houses, and there is an entire street dedicated to the sale of packaged tea. “Tea packaging in China is very well established. It’s here that Taiwanese designers have an advantage: they’re able to use the story and history of a brand and connect that to the wider culture. Tea leaves do not just make a tasty beverage. Tea relates to Chinese culture as a whole, which includes a Chinese person’s life, beliefs, language, even Confucian and Taoist teachings. All of these systems are part of tea culture. How we convert an understanding of this culture into packaging design is the key.”

陳進東小檔案：

從事設計工作超過20年，現為麥傑廣告創意總監，同時也是中華平面設計協會輔導理事長、大學視傳系兼任助理教授，曾榮獲Red Dot、IF等國內外知名設計大獎， 2011台北世界設計大會全球宣傳設計便是由他操刀，擅長品牌形象規劃與設計策略整合。

About James Chen

James Chen has worked in the design field for over 20 years and is currently the director of Magic Creative. He serves as Assistant Chairman of the Taiwan Graphic Design Association and is an assistant professor (visual communications) at various Taiwanese universities. He has been honored with numerous domestic and international awards, and has taken home Red Dot Award and iF Awards trophies. He was responsible for the design of the international promotional material for the 2011 Taiwan World Design Expo. His strength lies in brand image planning and design strategy integration.