Let’s break down the four big options craft beverage brands are choosing between right now for cans: pressure-sensitive stickers, shrink sleeves, digitally printed (or “painted”) cans, and direct-to-substrate printing. None of these is universally “best.” Each one solves a different problem, and the right call depends on your volume, your timeline, and how often you’re planning to switch things up.
HICKORY, NC Hickory-based graphic designer Matt Everley and City Walk Brewing recently won a 2025 CBMA Platinum “Crushie” Award for Best Can Label Design in the Ready-to-Drink Cocktails category. The award recognizes excellence in craft beverage marketing and design worldwide.
The competition was presented by Craft Beverage Marketing Awards. The winning entry was for the label design of a series of Vodka Seltzers for City Walk Brewing & Distilling in Hickory, NC, and was among hundreds of submissions from over 25 countries around the world competing across diverse categories based on beverage type. The Craft Beverage Marketing Awards (CBMAs), known as “The Crushies,” launched in 2020 to celebrate the very best in beverage marketing, where producers, agencies, artists, and their marketing partners showcase their finest work and compete for recognition.
I’ve had my eyes on the Crushie Awards over the last few years and felt confident in submitting these seltzer label designs. Working closely with City Walk’s owners, a series of 12oz ‘slim’ can layouts were created, featuring abstract fruit icons and clean layouts. We feel the designs embody the product, and would make an impact on store shelves.”
-Matt Everley, Graphic Designer
City Walk’s owners Zack and Tucker Cranford are equally excited about the award. “The can label designs capture the vision we had in mind for our seltzer offerings,” said Zack.
“Matt was able to transform our ideas into sophisticated labels to beautifully represent the products we sell, as well as command glances in stores and our taproom. This award reinforces the time and combined effort of our collaboration.”
-Zack Cranford, City Walk Brewing
The Vodka Seltzers in this series—City Walk’s Blueberry Lemon and Salted Watermelon flavors—can be found in select ABC stores across North Carolina, and at City Walk Brewing & Distilling’s Hickory, NC taproom.
This award is the first international award for both Everley and City Walk. Everley has won numerous awards for logos, web sites, and packaging design systems, including an American Graphic Design Award from GDUSA Magazine for City Walk Distilling’s spirit labels earlier this year. Learn more about his packaging and label design services or see more examples in his packaging and label design portfolio. For more information, call 919-593-2092.
For more info about City Walk Brewing & Distilling, visit www.citywalkbrewing.com or visit their location at 205 Main Ave NE in downtown Hickory, NC.
HICKORY, NC Hickory-based graphic design studio m.e.designlab and City Walk Distilling were recently selected as winners for a 2025 American Packaging Design Award by a nationwide panel of judges. The award recognizes excellence in communication and graphic design.
The competition was presented by Graphic Design USA Magazine. A highly selective 10% of the 2,600+ entries were honored this year. The winning entry was for the label design of a series of spirits for City Walk Distilling in Hickory, NC.
“I’ve been aspiring to create a double-sided label series for a while now, and finally found the perfect fit to utilize this interesting and elegant look,” said Matt Everley, owner of m.e.designlab. “Working closely with City Walk’s owners, a series of minimalist artworks were created as backdrops for the see-through side of the label. Each feature a lake or mountain scene reminiscent of Hickory and the surrounding Foothills area, with the opposite side designed for the description of the liquid within.”
-Matt Everley, Graphic Designer
City Walk’s owners Zack and Tucker Cranford are equally excited about the award. “The spirit label designs capture the essence of our vision for the distillery’s initial offerings,” said Zack.
“Matt was able to transform our ideas into vibrant and sophisticated labels to beautifully represent the products we sell, as well the area we call home. This award reinforces the time and combined effort of our collaboration.”
-Zack Cranford, City Walk Distilling
Spirits in this series—City Walk’s Vodka, Gin, and Bourbon—can be found in select ABC stores across North Carolina, and at City Walk Brewing & Distilling’s Hickory, NC taproom.
Everley has won numerous awards for logos, web sites, and packaging design systems including several previous American Graphic Design Awards over the last two decades. His portfolio can be viewed at www.matte69.sg-host.com/portfolio. For more information, call 919-593-2092.
NOTE: This blog article was originally written 3 years ago. Have my opinions changed? Not really! Read on…
I’ve been building custom websites with shopping cart functionality for years. Two of my favorite platforms are WordPress and Shopify. Here’s some info on the pros and cons of both for selling online!
In a nutshell, WordPress (WP) is an open-source platform, meaning it’s up to the user (you, or someone you hire, such as m.e.) to maintain updates and security, but offers a TON of scalability through plugins and third-party software. Shopify is closed-source, meaning Shopify handles updates and security, but you are limited to the only “apps” they provide or have cleared others to provide. Both require a roughly 3% take on sales, and both can be in relatively the same price range per month once you factor in web hosting, security/SSL, payment gateway and possible add-ons. Both are very popular and “easy” to use, so I’m merely trying to outline how they differ below…
Please also be aware there are two versions of WordPress (.com and .org). WordPress.com is like Shopify where you pay monthly and it controls the updates and security. I do NOT recommend wordpress.com. If choosing WordPress, it’s best to install and configure the free software at wordpress.org in order to take full control of WP’s capabilities.
*NOTE: Not all WordPress hosting packages include e-mail. Website hosting from Siteground includes e-mail, whereas other companies tend to focus on website and direct users to a third-party such as Google for e-mail accounts using the same domain name.
*NOTE: Shopify hosting packages do NOT include e-mail. So be sure to budget for a third-party such as Google for e-mail accounts using the same domain name.
Okay, so I know this a TON of info. But all good stuff for you to consider. There are a couple of articles I referenced for this if you want to dig deeper…
Shopify vs WordPress (2022) – Which is Best?
Shopify vs WordPress: Which is Best for Your Online Store
Likewise, there are a lot of other platforms worth considering such as Bigcommerce or Squarespace, but I would recommend WordPress and Shopify over both of these. If you’re asking my preference, it will always be WordPress since I have the most experience with it and I really love the flexibility from both a design and functionality perspective.
So what’s next? Contact m.e. for estimates for what I can handle regarding either platform. Ultimately it will depend on how much work is involved, so I would love for you to fill out a website workplan questionnaire I can send through email.
Happy researching!
Matt
P.S. – A word or two about web hosting… I offer “Managed Website Hosting” for $50/mo, which includes quarterly WP/plugin/theme updates + SSL and dedicated VPS (Virtual Private Server—which houses a website separately from other sites which could be infected with malware or decrease performance in a “shared” environment). A typical Shopify plan with hosting included is $29/mo. There is cheaper hosting out there for around $10/mo+ from companies like Siteground. But with web hosting you definitely get what you pay for!
HICKORY, NC Matt Everley, of Hickory-based graphic design studio m.e.designlab, was recently selected as a winner for a 2023 American Packaging Design Award by a nationwide panel of judges. The award recognizes excellence in communication and graphic design.
The competition was presented by Graphic Design USA Magazine. A highly selective 10% of the 2,000+ entries were honored this year. Everley’s winning entry was for the label design of a series of barrel-aged beers for Sidetracked Brewery in Morganton, NC.
“I’ve designed dozens of label series throughout my career, but this one seemed special right out of the gate,” Everley said. “I was able to work closely with Sidetracked Brewery’s owner and head brewer Joseph Ackerman on each of these concepts. We created some preliminary options for the first two beers (Tyrannis and Aleannan) and decided on the direction. From there we continued to develop the look and feel, and carried it through to the third beer, Altera Vida. Partnering with breweries like Sidetracked and people who have a passion for their work are what keep me coming back to design creative packaging in the craft beer industry. This award reinforces the design on the label lives up to the beer inside it!”
Barrel-aged beers in this series can be found in select stores in the Morganton, Hickory, and Charlotte areas of North Carolina, as well as from Sidetracked Brewery in Morganton, NC.
Everley has won numerous awards for logos, web sites, direct mail and corporate identity systems including several previous American Graphic Design Awards over the last two decades. Matt resides in Hickory, NC with his wife and three daughters. His portfolio can be viewed at www.matte69.sg-host.com/portfolio. For more information, call 919-593-2092.