First Round

New York, May 8, 2026
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Fresh from her flight from Florence, Italy, Miriam Frescura @miriamfresh from @auge_d stated that, culturally, Italians find belonging and connection by sharing experiences and bars are particularly prone to foster both through foosball tables, card games, coffee, aperitivos, and loooong conversations.

Two alcoholic beverages, four directions presented where each is explored down to the most minute detail as they seek to be very clear from the start about how each package has to go out into the world — this includes materials, textures, embossing, foil, anything and everything that should be considered and explored. In the process they question where the brand could be now and into the future. Each direction is given a visual summary and then all four are set side-by-side for a comparison.

To wrap up, she shared that it is important to distinguish between work that relies on trends or beautiful design elements and work that has a big idea or concept behind it.
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#firstround #firstroundNYC #2026 #ucllc #branding identity conference newyork
Photos by @sofianegron