The female-led studio has given the baby care newcomer a soft, fluid identity with rounded lowercase type, a floating ‘o’, and an ochre-yellow palette – built to feel credible and aspirational, all at the same time.
The baby care aisle isn’t somewhere I’ve ever needed to walk down, but if I do stumble upon it, I’ll usually find one of two things: heritage clinical brands that look like medicine, or cartoon-led products drowning in bright colours and nauseating characters. Mercifully, Smoosh, a new premium baby skincare brand, does neither, thanks to female-led studio LULACREATES.
Founded by former Boots and babycare specialists Sophie and Victoria, Smoosh launches with naturally derived, sensitive-skin formulations and a digital-first approach to branding and community. LULACREATES was tasked with the full identity: logo, packaging system, brand guidelines, and the visual language to position Smoosh as a serious challenger.
Founder Louise O’Kane said the project came down to spotting a genuine gap: “Modern parents are more ingredient-conscious than ever,” she says. “They’ll spend hours researching formulations, reading reviews and investing in products that genuinely work, but visually, the category hasn’t evolved at the same pace.”
Design as a trust signal
Research into the category revealed that split: instantly recognisable but clinical-looking legacy brands on one side, playful child-focused competitors on the other. Both communicate trust in their own way, but few combine premium formulation credentials with a contemporary lifestyle feel.
Smoosh’s answer is a soft, tactile, fluid identity that still feels at home in the category. The custom-drawn logo pairs rounded lowercase typography with a floating ‘o’ inspired by bubbles, movement, and the softness of baby skin, while organic curves and subtle distortions keep things light and leave room for motion and digital applications further down the line.
Working within tight production constraints – a controlled palette and limited print colours – Louise built a system around an ochre-yellow accent and softer complementary tones, varying the packaging colours across products so parents can grab the right bottle during bath time.
Zooming out, it’s clear the identity draws on premium skincare and beauty, with products that balance much-needed credibility with desirability. “Consumers are becoming hyper-aware of ingredients and formulations, so aesthetic value needs to also signal trust,” Louise explains. “We wanted to create something worthy of a beautifully curated bathroom shelf while still feeling authentic to the realities of parenthood.”
Built for the feeds
Social was central from the start. As a digital-first business, Smoosh needed an identity that could live on shelf and in the feeds of creators, parents, and online communities alike.
“There are very few baby skincare brands that feel native to today’s digital culture,” says Louise. “This had to be tactile, shareable and instantly recognisable online as well as in retail.”
It seems to be doing pretty well. Since launch, Smoosh has drawn significant influencer engagement and retailer interest, with conversations already underway with major stockists. It’s a nice reminder that as more female-founded challengers enter these established categories, thoughtful branding can carve out space for something genuinely different.
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