Grupo Erik.

Grupo Erik is responsible for the manufacture and distribution of merchandise for hundreds of franchises (Star Wars, Marvel, DC Comics, Lord of the Rings, The Witcher, Money Heist, Stranger Things, etc.). In recent years, we have been chosen to develop a series of new products from scratch (without previous designs), and they trusted us to come up with the initial ideas and sketches, and finally, to create the 3D modelling in order to generate a prototype for the final manufacturer.

Since, at heart, we at Levulevú are a group of ‘geeks,’ we found it totally stimulating to collaborate on all these projects, many of which we have had the opportunity to place, as real products, on our own shelves at home.

The premiere of the latest instalment of the Ghostbusters saga was a good opportunity to launch a mug and remind fans that they were back.

When we were commissioned to create this design, we thought it would be a good idea to recapture the original essence, the one thing that all the instalments over the years have in common: the ghost logo. Only this time, we were going to make it embossed and painted with phosphorescent paint so that it would glow bright green in the dark. A detail that was just right.

When Netflix released the series The Witcher, which already had a large following from the video game, Grupo Erik decided it was a great opportunity to launch a collection of merchandise, starting with a beer mug based on the protagonist, Geralt. We quickly realised that the design could focus on the protagonist’s dark studded leather outfit and the characteristic leather “X” on his chest, topped off with a medallion featuring a wolf.

When Grupo Erik commissioned us to design a new jug dedicated to The Lord of the Rings, we thought it would be an easy task. But after the meeting, we quickly realised that the market was completely saturated with jugs based on this saga. Practically everything had already been done.

Racking our brains – as fans of everything related to these films – we realised that there was one scene that had been overlooked, the only place in the entire trilogy where the characters happily drink beer: The Prancing Pony tavern.

We proposed two very different models: one following the style of the mugs used by the characters to toast, finished with details of the tavern’s interior decoration, and another more daring one, where the entire mug recreated the exterior of the tavern, including wooden beams and a fireplace. But both featured the hanging sign at the entrance, just as it appears in the film.

The latter was the most convincing, and the one that was finally launched on the market, in a version quite similar (within the limits of manufacturing) to the 3D model we proposed.

The popular series has been a television phenomenon for years, and Grupo Erik was aware that it would be difficult to surprise fans with a novel and attractive product. When we were asked for proposals to create a lamp, as fans of the series, we quickly saw the opportunity to give a nod to the ‘upside down’ by simply turning the lamp on its axis to show a different scene on each side.