Creation of a biannual magazine to promote My Secret Kitchen’s unique food and drink product at their tasting events (and beyond).
2010–2015
“We’ve worked with Jeff for over 10 years on projects ranging from design and copywriting to full brand development. Jeff has a unique ability to listen carefully to our ideas, challenge positively and then come up with some fantastic concepts that always make us smile and say WOW! The relationship is a collaborative one where Jeff creatively deciphers what we are trying to communicate. We can confidently say that Jeff’s input is one of the key reasons for our success.”
Clare Moran, Co-Founder, My Secret Kitchen (now Co-founder, TasteFinders)
‘Menu’ magazine
In the early days, people attending My Secret Kitchen’s tasting events were given an A4 list of products. Feeling that something more exciting was needed, Clare and I developed ‘Menu’ magazine: an A5 publication containing a range of product features, recipes, details about the company and a much more visual catalogue of My Secret Kitchen’s products.
Between 2010 and 2015 (when the company was sold to an overseas counterpart looking to expand into the UK) we produced 11 editions of ‘Menu’. In addition to the design of each issue, I wrote or edited the text, and worked with Clare to produce all of the food photography.
From the outset, budgets had meant there was no scope for specialist professional food photography. So Clare and I collaborated on this, with her preparing and styling the food, and me taking the photos.
To an expert eye, the images may not quite as perfect as those in mainstream food magazines. But as is the case in many such situations where I undertake photography work during a project, creating something of a good standard for a fraction of the cost of a professional shoot can be a more expedient option.
Pages from the magazine
Special editions, special ingredients
From the outset, the aim with ‘Menu’ was to create the feel of a mainstream food magazine. The covers of special editions used photographic montages based around stock images of people, and took more of a ‘people first’ rather than ‘food first’ approach, but with one My Secret Kitchen’s products being clearly showcased.
