Custom Label Design Inspiration: The 1980s

 “The past isn't dead,” wrote Faulkner in an oft-quoted line. “It’s not even past.”


Nostalgia is among the foremost powerful and universal human emotions. consistent with a recent YouGov study:

  • 9 out of 10 people say they think fondly about the past a minimum of occasionally.
  • Almost half people say they think fondly about the past often or nearly always .
  • 55% of individuals say, if that they had access to a machine they might visit the past. Only 28% would head into the longer term . (Marty McFly, that lucky guy, did both.)
The specific focus of our nostalgia varies by generation. For Gen Xers and older millennials, the 1980s evokes very hot feelings … and makes have taken notice.

When Nintendo released its mini NES Classic Edition in 2016 (a revival of a console that first launched in 1985), it sold out instantly. On Netflix, ’80s throwback Stranger Things may be a ratings and cultural juggernaut.

Design trends from the 1980s also are experiencing a renaissance. the last decade that was once derided for being too flashy and shallow is now praised for its adventurous spirit and willingness to interrupt with tradition.

How can your brand get in on the ’80s nostalgia rush? a bit like your generation X and millennial customers do, you'll look to the past for inspiration. Here are a number of the hallmarks of the ’80s aesthetic and the way you'll apply the design to your custom product labels.

Memphis-Inspired Design

When you believe the stereotypical ’80s look, what you’re imagining may be a style pioneered by a gaggle of Milan-based designers at the start of the last decade . The Memphis Group, as they came to be known (which, incidentally, had nothing to try to to with the town in Tennessee), rejected the austere minimalism of modernism and instead played with squiggly lines, angular geometric shapes, and bold colors.

Memphis Design

Memphis design was a force to be reckoned with within the 1980s and into the ’90s, finding its way onto furniture, bedding, television program sets, and yes, Trapper Keepers.

For your custom labels: The less-is-more approach is played out. Stand out on the shelf with a glance that emphasizes movement, color, and fun.

Neon Colors

Whatever the ‘80s were about, it wasn’t subtlety. The decade’s in-your-face attitude was exemplified by its preferred color palette: neon. Bright, glowing colors were everywhere, from fashion to films.

For your custom labels: Ask your label printer about an extended range of colours which may include neon.

‘Futuristic’ Styling

In the 1980s, everyone was looking forward to a future dominated by technology that was both alluring and a touch scary. Metallic textures, energy bolts, electric grids, and laser beams featured heavily in movies like Tron and Blade Runner, to not mention product packaging.

Video game cartridges and VHS tapes showcased this vision of the longer term (which we will now, paradoxically, ask as retro-futuristic).

For your custom labels: Use metallic foils and inks to offer your labels a slick digital sheen.

Zine Culture

Zines were a well-liked niche media that arose out of fandom and punk subcultures, reaching peak prominence within the late 1980’s. Armed with photocopiers, rudimentary publication software, or simply scissors and glue, small-scale self-publishers would put out zines documenting local music scenes, promoting sci-fi fan fiction, or expounding on philosophy and culture. the planning approach was anarchic and raw.

According to a Shutterstock survey of design trends, the zine aesthetic is back: “Built on principles of collage, and largely influenced by the invention of the photocopier, it's paper cutouts, noise and grain textures, and rough-edged layers that outline this trend.”

For your custom labels: Experiment with overlapping imagery and every-which-way text. Don’t be scared of looking busy or cluttered.

Throwback Packaging

Nothing can induce a wave of nostalgia better than the important thing. Like bands playing their greatest hits, big-name brands like Tide, Doritos, and Pepsi have found market success recycling the looks their biggest fans remember from decades past.

For your custom labels: Revisit your design archives. Bring back your vintage ’80s search for a special “limited edition” throwback promotion.

While the large hair might not (yet) be back, the fun and bold look of the 1980s is certainly making its way back to the planning world. trying to find more label design inspiration? inspect our recent rundowns of our favourite household product labels, energy drink labels, and sauce labels.

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