Empire State Vapor, a team of two New York City based makers of handcrafted, high quality e-cigarette liquids specially aged in bourbon oak barrels, asked me to design a way to effectively sell and debut their first line of e-liquids. Recognizing a niche in the e-liquid market, I quickly pointed out that this market was almost entirely saturated with badly designed, gritty, overly masculine, and trashy looking liquid packaging. This led to the proposal of the concept that would lead Empire State Vapor to a roaring success immediately after premiering their product. Empire State Vapor from then on was based around the concept of being "The fine wine of e-liquids", a concept which ambitiously aims to reimagine the idea of an e-liquid, elevating the product to the status of an art form.



The packaging and brand identity grew very naturally from this concept, influenced by high end wine labels, New York Art Deco, and upscale Manhattan lounges. The taste of each e-liquid is meant to evoke a decadent taste of sitting in an expensive restaurant in uptown Manhattan, relaxing with a glass of masterfully aged red wine and a hot meal. Empire State Vapor's packaging is meant to look so luxurious and decadent that the user's first instinct is to just drink the bottle itself. The logo's leaf icon is a reference to the brand's unique hook, the fact that their liquids are aged in oak barrels. The icon is meant to be simple and easily memorable, while also creating an air of luxury and class.

The gold bottles immediately stood out in stores, and in their first week alone the small startup received two wholesale orders and sold over 100 bottles. Empire State Vapor's handcrafted flavors repeatedly receive fantastic reviews and continue to transform the world of e-cigarettes with their innovative and artful process.