Reset
Studio Kiln gave Reset, a weight-loss product for people who would rather not count every calorie, a character at its heart: Ester, built from blocks that revolve, shift and rearrange. Part guide, part reassuring presence, the character shapes the wordmark and the interface with its forms and motion, and is the app itself.
Client
Reset
Credits
Brand Identity, Character Design, Motion Design, Digital Design: Studio Kiln. Creative Direction: Nathan Smith, Charlie Hocking. Design: Edoardo Albertini, Archie Paxton, Claudia Aggett, Meg Mardon. Motion: Edoardo Albertini, Archie Paxton, Claudia Aggett. 3D: Archie Paxton. Copywriting: Lucy Davies, Meg Mardon. Client: Bryan Cartwright, Jess Lewis.
Typography
Arkive by M22 Type Foundry, Quadrant Text by Matter of Sorts
The brief
Most weight-loss plans assume an average body and ask for a life on hold, with every meal logged and every calorie counted. Reset takes a more understanding approach, made for people who want to move forward on their own terms, around work, relationships and everyday life. It starts with a 30-second face scan that finds a person’s metabolic type, then builds meals around how their body actually works, with no calorie counting and no food logging. Studio Kiln set out to earn trust without the usual wellness promises.
The system
Ester is the system. The character’s geometric blocks and revolving motion shape the Reset wordmark and the whole digital interface, so the guide never sits apart from the product: Ester is not confined to a chat window, they are the app. The experience adapts to each person, offering reassurance to some and practical advice to others, in a straight-talking voice. The same presence runs through the iOS app and its App Store screens and icon, the Apple Watch, an iPhone widget, the Weekly Review, step-by-step recipes and desktop notifications.
The identity
Ester has no human facial expressions and no body to transform, and speaks only through movement. Kiln chose an abstract form over a human-like one, avoiding the forced familiarity of an overly cheerful mascot, so people can see their own feelings reflected in the character. Ester’s blocks cascade and shuffle to show uncertainty, encouragement and small wins, and take on playful forms across the product, from “What’s our move today?” on the widget to a check-in with Ester. The emphasis stays on how someone feels, not on how they look.
Outcome
Reset now has a guide people can read at a glance and trust over time: one character that is the brand, the interface and the voice, meeting each person where they are and helping them move forward without putting life on pause.
