People were surprised when they found out that we have Vanissa, who has just turned 23 this year, as our illustrator.“Isn’t she a little too young to handle this? And why would you like to spend so much effort on product packaging? After all, it is the product which matters!”

Heh, never judge a book by its cover. The product does matter, yet for us, Dousnack is also a gift to share with all of our paw friends out there. Since we couldn’t meet and greet each and every one of them, we need a package who can speak for us like, “Woof woof, we love and we care for you so we hope you enjoy the snacks!”

“Hey, do check out this very creative page, it’s called Humana!” a friend of us recommended one day, knowing that we have been on a desperate search mission for an illustrator.

That was how we found Humana on Instagram, and we were instantly attracted by this seemingly weird and childlike, yet super lively character created by Vanissa, that illustrator, who has just turned 23 this year! Vibrant colours, fun and adventurous; it seems like we have found the best match!

We were excited to share with her our ideas, and we sent her our first invitation email.

“Hi, I’m Vanissa Foo. Thank you for your love towards Humana. And I’m definitely interested to work on your brand’s packaging design. I’m looking forward to the collaboration!” she replied light heartedly.

We are blessed. She has a nice character too!

We have our first meeting at an ice-cream/gelato shop, with DouDou tagging along.

A girl then walked in the door and said hi. It seems like she has just hoped off the time machine, time travelled all the way from the 70s or 80s to meet us. She was in a vintage dress, with a pair of handmade earrings – it was her slim laptop which has reminded us of which era she actually comes from. She has a company with her. Both of them greeted us with a big smile on their young faces.

We have gotten a gelato each for ourselves, and the conversations started naturally.

We were happy to learned that Vanissa is about the same age as us, laugh wholeheartedly, and has a cat named Inari (yep, that seasoned deep-fried tofu pockets that you enjoy in a Japanese restaurant, Inari).

It was when the gelatos have almost melted that we have finally decided to talk about work arrangements. We showed her our concept proposal for Dousnack’s packaging design. The girl listened quietly to us introducing the brand, the products, and how we would like our packaging to look like. She has her quiet dignity. Sometimes, she nodded and looked into our eyes, or she would scribble on her notebook in a way only she could comprehend.

“I have an idea (eureka)! We can create Doudou as a master-like character, with human as his humble servants, and with snacks served all on his table. And we can have all of your different products drawn on the package, so each product will have their distinct packaging! What do you think?” she tested her idea.

We smiled and gave her a big thumbs-up.

We were really thankful that it was Vanissa whom we have found. Having an effective communication is one of the most challenging part between the collaboration of a designer and his/her clients. Yet Vanissa was like an old friend who knows us just well- she always knows what we want. 

Well, of course there are amendments which we would make throughout the process, but she never failed to surprise us each time she gave us her new drafts.

The only unpleasant memory throughout our two-month collaboration was on the day when she has lost Inari.

Being a pet owner ourselves, we understand that it was a difficult time for her. Yet the memories stayed, and Inari will be preserved in her heart forever.

“We love it!” we couldn’t help to share with her our excitement when we have finally gotten the design prototype printed out. 

Sending out photos after photos to Vanissa, who is based in KL.

It was when she has sent to us the finalized design file that we have realized that, we have done it! Dousnack’s packaging design has been produced!

【Profile】

Vanissa is a graphic designer based in Malaysia. Despite her commercial artworks, she is still the girl who loves to illustrate, and she also works as a freelance illustrator during her free time.

Vanissa thinks that illustrations speak the mind of their creators. If you’d like to have a conversation with her beautiful brain (haha), you may visit Humana on Instagram at humana_art or visit GMBB, KL, where she has a space showcasing her artworks. Humana is a funny friend to talk to, you’ll see.