Eat like you live here.
Dundore and Heister is a sustainable whole animal butcher shop founded in the Pennsylvania Dutch traditions of community, craftsmanship and a legacy of thrift. We share our knowledge, practice our art and reuniting our customers with our unique and thriving local food system. We empower our customers to make their meals more meaningful and help them see the impact of their buying decisions in a larger context.
Brand strategy
Long before ‘organic’ and ‘natural’ became trendy, the Pennsylvania Dutch of Berks County embodied farm to table. Local butchers were a vital part of that way of life and were always considered trusted neighbors. Their shops offered a sense of community where customers felt welcome and they came to appreciate the skill and expertise of true craftsmen.
I was asked to work on every aspect of the Dundore & Heister brand so it would pay tribute to the legacy of nose-to-tail thrift and honor the timeless tradition of connecting proud and hard-working farmers to their communities without pretense. The brand needed to stand in contrast to today’s sterile and faceless supermarket experience, connect with the legacy of Berk’s County, and portray that the brand would offer local, pasture-raised and organic meats in a unique, wholesome, and inviting environment reminiscent of a bygone era. I created everything from the brand strategy to all elements of the brand and every touchpoint for their multiple stores.
VISUAL LANGUAGE
A new story told through old symbols
When Dundore & Heister, Pennsylvania’s premier whole animal butcher, sought to evolve their brand, they turned to CRZY Design to create a visual language as bold, honest, and flavorful as their craft. Rooted in heritage but reimagined for today’s conscious consumer, we built an identity system that bridges old-world butchery with modern minimalism. The result? A brand that doesn’t just stand out on the shelf - it carves its own path.
Modernizing Pennsylvania Dutch Hex signs
At CRZY, we believe that building a strong brand goes beyond logos and color palettes—it’s about crafting a distinctive visual language that roots a brand in both place and purpose. For Dundore & Heister Meats, that meant drawing inspiration from one of Pennsylvania’s most iconic folk art traditions: the Hex sign.
A design system rooted in culture
Hex signs are an unmistakable part of Pennsylvania Dutch heritage - geometric, colorful, symbolic, and deeply connected to the land and its people. These designs traditionally adorned barns across Berks County, often believed to offer protection, prosperity, and strength. We saw an opportunity to not only honor this tradition but to reinvent it through the lens of a modern butcher brand.
Research-driven reinvention
We immersed ourselves in the world of Hex signs, studying historical books, folk art references, local museums, and even driving through Berks County to photograph and document existing barn signs. From that research, we extracted the core principles that defined Hex design: symmetry, symbolism, and storytelling. Most traditional Hex signs are built on 5- or 6-point symmetry, often featuring mirrored elements that represent unity, balance, strength, and courage. These themes felt incredibly aligned with Dundore & Heister’s ethos of whole-animal butchery, sustainability, and regional pride.
Building a modular hex system
To bring this tradition forward, we designed a modular visual system that could adapt across brand touchpoints while maintaining a deep cultural resonance. The system begins with one of four foundational background shapes, onto which a wide-ranging library of custom iconographic elements can be layered. These symbols range from butchering tools and proteins to seasonal motifs and regional cues.
This gave us the flexibility to generate unique, ownable Hex-style icons that can represent everything from the overall brand to individual proteins, events, and special promotions. Each one is a mini-story, balancing tradition with bold, modern execution.
Our reinterpretation of the Hex sign didn’t just honor tradition, it reactivated it. The visual language we developed for Dundore & Heister bridges the gap between history and modernity, creating a visual identity that is both culturally rooted and brand-forward. It gives Dundore & Heister a symbolic shorthand, a set of evolving, meaningful icons that can adapt over time and deepen their connection to the community they serve.
PACKAGING DESIGN
Premium meat deserves premium packaging
At CRZY, we believe packaging is more than just a container - it’s a statement. It’s the handshake, the first impression, and often, the deciding factor between being passed over or picked up. For Dundore & Heister Meats, we saw an opportunity to completely reimagine what premium meat packaging could look and feel like in a local market saturated with generic solutions.
Setting the standard with custom packaging
From day one, we knew that creating custom packaging across the full product line, from fresh cuts to dry goods, was key to setting Dundore & Heister apart. We didn’t want the product to just sit on shelves. We wanted it to stand out and stand proud. The packaging had to reflect the same care, craftsmanship, and local pride that went into the meats themselves.
Elevating the Eeeryday
One of the most impactful shifts came from how we approached raw meat packaging. Traditionally seen as purely functional and disposable, we turned this into a high-touch brand experience. Custom butcher paper printed with Hex patterns transformed something ordinary into something memorable. Premium labels, structured layouts, and refined typography created packaging that felt more like a chef’s private reserve than a local butcher shop.
Standard packaging
Premium packaging
EXTERIOR, INTERIOR, AND RETAIL DESIGNS
A visual beacon for a modern butcher
At CRZY, we approach signage and retail design as wayfinding tools and powerful extensions of brand storytelling. For Dundore & Heister Meats, every design element had to do more than mark a location; it needed to communicate the brand’s elevated philosophy, draw in new customers, and function seamlessly across various speeds and distances.
Designing for movement, scale, and context
Located on a busy thoroughfare, the Dundore & Heister storefront needed to stand out to both fast-moving traffic and slow-moving footfall. We created a cohesive signage system prioritizing hierarchy, clarity, and visibility. At its core was a primary round illuminated sign—an iconic visual marker designed for maximum impact. Strategically positioned and internally lit, it serves as a beacon in an area with little street lighting. The circular form is distinctive and classic, helping it pop day or night.
A mural that tells a story at 45 MPH
To further reinforce brand awareness from a distance, we designed a large-scale wall mural—a bold, visually arresting element tailored specifically for drivers speeding past. The mural acts as a giant canvas for the brand’s aesthetic, anchoring the building in the local landscape and transforming the exterior into a living billboard.
Moments of detail and discovery
Closer to the building, the experience shifts from broad impact to tactile detail. The storefront windows feature custom gold leaf branding and messaging, a nod to traditional craftsmanship that reflects the premium quality of the meats inside. These elements were designed for slower-moving traffic during rush hour, as well as pedestrians and loyal customers approaching the entrance. The gold leaf not only elevates the storefront’s appearance—it communicates refinement and heritage in an understated, elegant way.
A cohesive system that works at every level
From 100 feet away in a moving vehicle to standing a few inches from the glass, each piece of exterior signage was thoughtfully designed to create a layered experience that meets people where they are. This multi-tiered approach ensures that Dundore & Heister is always seen, always understood, and always on-brand—whether you’re driving past, walking by, or stepping inside.
PHOTOGRAPHY
A new look at butchering
At CRZY, we believe brand photography is more than just beautiful imagery; it’s a visual language that tells a story, evokes emotion, and builds trust. For Dundore & Heister Meats, photography was a critical part of the rebrand. We set out to reframe the traditional perception of butchering by creating a series of elevated, editorial-style visuals that romanticize the product. We reconnected it to the land and legacy of Berks County, Pennsylvania.ering by creating a series of elevated, editorial-style visuals that romanticized the product and reconnected it to the land and legacy of Berks County, Pennsylvania.
Rooted in place, steeped in purpose
To ground the brand in its local heritage, we thoughtfully incorporated props and settings sourced from around Berks County. From weathered barnwood surfaces to vintage cast iron tools and hand-thrown ceramics, every detail was chosen to reflect the craftsmanship, pride, and provenance behind the product. The sense of place wasn’t just implied—it was embedded.
A palette from nature
We layered in a natural, earth-toned color palette—deep reds, soft browns, dusty greens—that subtly reinforced the brand’s commitment to clean, responsible farming and whole-animal butchering. This organic visual language became a core part of the identity, helping consumers intuitively connect the product with purity, honesty, and sustainability.
More than meat
Rather than falling back on tired tropes of raw cuts on sterile white backdrops, we took a culinary and almost reverent approach to photographing the product. Each image was composed with intention—balancing richness and restraint, texture and simplicity. The result is photography that feels elevated and soulful, spotlighting the unmatched quality of the product without relying on overly descriptive language.
Designed to have an impact
The final visuals helped differentiate Dundore & Heister in a crowded category, giving them a striking and ownable look that feels as intentional and crafted as their meats. It positioned the brand as thoughtful and premium, while still remaining authentic to its roots. In short, the imagery didn’t just support the brand—it became the brand.
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