LEON x John Lewis
Tableware

Brief

As a collaborative venture between retail stalwart John Lewis and health food giant Leon, this tableware collection had to reflect the aesthetic of casual, contemporary food preparation. The designs needed to speak the same language as Leon’s popular recipe book, Fast & Free – a brightly illustrated cookbook offering completely gluten,
dairy and refined sugar-free recipes.

Concept

The design for the table and packaging began with translating illustrations from Fast & Free to a set of CAD drawings that represented each individual tableware element. Created in a factory in Portugal, the drawings provided a canvas on which to craft nature-inspired patterns. By abstracting the rhythmic forms found in food – the concentric rings of an onion or the Fibonacci spirals of a cauliflower or pineapple – the design took on a minimalism that would appeal to the modern diner. In parallel, bold colour contrasted with the tableware’s sustainable materials, celebrating their inherent texture.
The collection largely made use of natural and recycled earthenware, with glassware being produced in a recycled plant in Portugal.
Colour also played an important role in signifying Leon’s recognisable brand, marrying the tableware with the health food’s wider identity. Through the application of a confident, recognisable palette, nature-inspired pattern and earthy materials, the collection became defined by a blend of sophistication and familiarity – a combination that perfectly exemplifies the Leon x John Lewis customer.

Outcome

By keeping the tastes of the end-user as a priority at each design stage, this project enabled the creation of a dining collection that felt truly current.
At its core, the Leon x John Lewis tableware series promotes intensity of colour, rhythmic pattern, and contemporary craftsmanship.