Starr Hill Brewery

The Brief & Strategic Challenge

Starr Hill Brewery is the second-oldest craft brewery in Virginia, distributing its products across the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern United States. Founded in 1999, the business required a comprehensive brand refresh to modernize its market presence while remaining tied to its historical roots in live music and regional culture. The strategic challenge was to completely update the brand identity and packaging assets to attract new consumers without alienating the brewery’s legacy customer base.

Creative Direction & System Design

The final design simplifies the brand's visual assets, introducing custom typography that works alongside the original star logo. The packaging design borrows texture and styling cues from vintage rock posters and the Central Virginia landscape, pairing bright, distinct color-block palettes with individual beer flavor profiles. This systematic visual framework was built to scale across the brewery's entire physical footprint—including primary retail can packaging, tap handles, keg collars, and regional print collateral.

The Outcome

Following the launch, Starr Hill experienced a 43% sales spike for its flagship beer across primary distribution markets, and an overall 20% increase in packaged beer sales throughout its core territories. These commercial results demonstrate the direct link between an updated visual framework and increased retail revenue for an established legacy brand.