EKC Dover College Art students ‘scoop’ praise in Solley’s Ice Cream design competition

Art and Design students are continuing to impress with their branding work as they move into an exciting new stage of their live project with Solley’s Ice Cream. 

After visiting the company earlier in the academic year, students were set the challenge of developing a brand-new flavour alongside a complete campaign. This included brand identity, a social media post, a promotional poster, and even an ice cream “stabber” to be displayed in Solley’s parlour. 

This term, the finished concepts were unveiled, with students pitching their ideas to a panel of judges including Katie Morrison (Director) and Keith Morrison (Managing Director) from Solley’s, alongside Richard Archer, Commercial Director of Cactus Graphics. 

A wide range of imaginative concepts were presented, with mouth-watering flavours and eye-catching designs. These included Chocolate and Cherry, Rainbow Cookie, Angel Cake, Persimmon Pudding, Mango and Pistachio, ‘The Dark Side’ (Grape and Sour Cherry), Coco Berry, Raspberry Lemonade and ‘Sour Surge’ (Cherry Sourz and Blue Raspberry). 

After much deliberation, Jaden’s ‘Coco Berry’ concept, a coconut ice-cream paired with juneberry syrup, was awarded first place, praised for its originality and strong, cohesive campaign. 

Ruby’s vegan flavour, ‘Rainbow Cookie’, secured second place, standing out for its advertising focused on young people and inclusive approach. 

Speaking about her design, Ruby said: 

“The whole point of my flavour is to appeal to kids and feel nostalgic, as the cookies are something I had when I was younger. As I’m now vegan, I’m making it more inclusive. 

“I think the most enjoyable part was photographing my fake ice cream as I liked experimenting with different angles. 

“It’s helpful working with a live client like Solley’s. It puts into perspective deadlines and what you need to deliver, rather than leaving things unfinished. It also builds teamwork skills.” 

Throughout the process, students also collaborated with Cactus Graphics to understand professional printing and production. 

Lilly’s ‘Raspberry Lemonade’ was awarded Cactus Graphics’ Industry Professionals Choice Award, presented by Richard. He said of Lilly’s design: 

“For a professional standard, if our company had to present something, I’d choose Raspberry Lemonade. I’d be very happy if one of my team produced that and I think it’s exactly what you want to see in a portfolio.”

In addition to certificates, Jaden, Ruby and Lilly were rewarded with Love2Shop vouchers from Solley’s and the College.  

Looking ahead, there is also the exciting possibility that one of the student-designed flavours could be developed into a small batch, giving students the chance to see their work brought to life. 

All the student artwork will also be displayed in Solley’s parlour over the summer, where the public can view the designs and vote for their favourite. The final customer vote will take place at the end of the season. 

Reflecting on the standard of work, Keith said: 

“Judging it on creativity, commerciality and understanding the brief, every single student has really worked hard. When we saw them in October, they’ve really grown which is fantastic.  

“Choosing the winners were a lot harder than I thought it would be.” 

Katie added: 

“I was going to go with Coco Berry as well for the winning concept. We could spend hours judging them all and the range of designs is incredible.” 

This term’s competition has highlighted the impressive growth students have shown both creatively and professionally.  

Thanks to industry-led briefs like this, which take place throughout our Art courses, all students grow their ability to respond to clients and see what their next steps could look like. 

We’re excited to continue developing this partnership with Solley’s in the months ahead. 

If you’ve been interested by this project, why not explore our Art and Design courses and apply today?