Bon Charge - Brand Guide

Brand Essentials

• Display name: Bon Charge (typeset as BON CHARGE in caps for logo + headlines)
• URL: https://boncharge.com/
• Markets: US (primary), UK, AU, Global (137+ countries shipped, 100+ presentment currencies via Shopify Markets)
• Language rules: US English on .com (language_rules: us)
• Category: Wellness technology — red light therapy, blue light glasses, EMF protection, PEMF devices, infrared sauna, holistic beauty, sleep, blue-free lighting
• Founded: 2016 in Australia (originally as BluBlox, rebranded ~2022). First product launched 2017.
• Founders: Andy Mant + Katie Mant (Co-founders, husband + wife)
• Stakeholder profiles:
  • Andy Mant — APAC CEO of the Year 2023, 40under40 (2023)
  • Katie Mant — Forbes feature, 40under40 (2024)

Brand Essence

"At BON CHARGE, we don't just create products, we create experiences whilst encouraging rituals. Our voice reflects the balance between science and cutting-edge innovation made human, accessible, and inspiring. We are the ally who empowers people to make wellness part of their daily lives, through rituals that feel as good as they are effective." (Tone of Voice — Our Personality)

"We are science-led, but our reason for being is wellbeing. Our voice must always reflect this balance: authoritative yet human, expert yet approachable, precise yet warm."

Mission: "To simplify wellness by uniting the world's most trusted, science-backed technologies on one intuitive platform."

Core values: Trust · Simplicity · Efficiency · Empowerment · Balance

Brand tensions (every execution lives here):

1. Science ↔ Humanity
2. Innovation ↔ Ritual
3. Elevated ↔ Approachable
4. Sensory ↔ Clear
5. Confident ↔ Humble

Colours (authoritative — 9-colour warm-neutral palette + Scarlet accent)

"Our palette is inspired by the warmth of red light therapy and the diverse tones of the skin it supports. These shades are muted, neutral, and intentional - communicating inclusivity without cliché." (Brand Guideline)

Critical: site reads as black/white but the actual palette is warm-neutral. Onyx (#202020), not pure black. Linen Light (#FBF7F2) backgrounds, not pure white.

Typography (Instrument Sans + Instrument Serif via Google Fonts)

Sans weights in use: 400, 400i, 500, 500i, 600, 600i, 700, 700i. SemiBold 600 used "when impact is needed".

Serif rule (verbatim): "We always use Regular 400 Italics when using Instrument Serif. Use of Regular 400 is limited to a case by case basis but never when used with Instrument Sans (only use with Instrument Sans Regular 400)."

Pairing principle: "By pairing Instrument Sans with Instrument Serif, we achieve a refined contrast - modern yet editorial."

Product naming rule: Always same typeface + sizing across all uses, single line or multi-line. Examples: Red Light Face Mask, Infrared PEMF Sauna Dome, Red Light Therapy Blanket.

Font source: Google Fonts (both available as Instrument+Sans and Instrument+Serif)

Logo

• Type: Wordmark + Icon = Brandmark. Icon "an ode to the original branding of BluBlox whilst inspired by the double helix of DNA along with the 'B' of BON CHARGE."
• Placement: Left-aligned in header (desktop), centred (mobile)
• Files saved to assets/logos/:
  • BonCharge-white-logo-RGB_Primary.png — PRIMARY (white, for dark backgrounds)
  • BonCharge-black-logo-RGB_Secondary.png — secondary (black, for light backgrounds)
  • ICON ONLY.png — icon mark
• Clear space: equivalent to width of the BON CHARGE 'B' Icon
• Vector files (.svg / .ai): PENDING — to collect in Phase 5b

Navigation

• Style: Mega menu (desktop) + hamburger (mobile). Sticky header with utility bar (free shipping + warranty).
• Primary nav (4): Collections · Best Sellers · Bundles · Learn
• Sub-nav under Collections: Shop all · Red Light Therapy · Holistic Beauty · Infrared Sauna · PEMF Devices · Blue Free Lighting · EMF Blockers · Blue Light Blocking Glasses · Light Sensitivity Glasses · Computer Glasses · Kids Blue Light Glasses · Biohacking Sunglasses · Blackout Sleep Masks · Gift Cards
• Shop By Need: Recovery and Workout · Beauty, Hair and Skin · Sleep and Relaxation · Wellness and Longevity
• Nav CTA: None (cart + wishlist + login icons only)

Hero Patterns

• Layout: Centred type on Linen Light background. Three-line stacked headline rhythm using full-stops (per ToV punctuation rules).
• Homepage headline (verbatim): "Recover Faster. Sleep Deeper. Look Better."
• Homepage subhead: "Science-backed wellness technologies to enhance sleep, recovery, and beauty."
• Primary CTA: "SHOP BEST SELLERS →" (Onyx button, white text, uppercase)
• Secondary CTA: "Take our 30-second quiz to find your perfect solution →" (text link)
• Background: Linen Light with award badges + product hero imagery layered around type. No video.

CTA Language

Pattern: Hero + section CTAs uppercase with arrow. Transactional buttons sentence case. No exclamation marks anywhere — banned by punctuation rules. Scarlet only for sale-period CTAs (HOC + CMO sign-off per ToV).

Social Proof + Trust

• Customer base: 400,000+ customers (homepage), 137+ countries shipped
• Reviews: 5,700+ at 4.95★, Judge.me platform. Full export saved to 04-raw/judge-me/.
• Awards: Beauty Shortlist 2024 / 2025 / 2026 · Get The Gloss Gold 2025 · Health & Wellbeing Gold 2025
• Major partnerships:
  • Dr Mark Hyman — 4 co-branded bundles ($503 - $2,307)
  • Diary of a CEO (Steven Bartlett) — dedicated $978 bundle
  • Fulham FC — Official Recovery Partner (Premier League)
• Editorial bylines (blog): Ana Martins PhD · Dr Chérine Bazzane · Dr Shabana Daya · Dr Susanna Søberg · Shawn Stevenson · Eleanor Hoath
• Scientific Advisory Board: referenced on About page
• CS platform: Reamaze (full ticket exports saved to 04-raw/customer-service/)

Visual Style

• Border radius: moderate (~8-12px) on cards/buttons. Not pill, not sharp.
• Shadows: subtle drop shadows on product cards. Minimal elevation.
• Card pattern: image stack → star rating → review count → name → price → benefit tags → CTA.
• Spacing: generous between sections, comfortable density inside cards.
• Dividers: whitespace-led; minimal hard rules.
• Animation: hover states + smooth transitions.
• Overall aesthetic: Editorial. Reads like a clean wellness magazine, not a discount DTC site.

The Bijou (signature graphic shape system)

Bespoke holding shape derived from the icon. Rectangle/square with two right-angle corners + two curved corners (diagonally opposite). Two configurations: Left Hand (TL+BR right angles) and Right Hand (TR+BL right angles). Curved-corner radius: 10-40% of shortest dimension. Use sparingly for visual interest.

Photography (6 categories)

Compliance overlay: All visuals must show product per the user manual (e.g. protective goggles must be worn if user manual requires). No children. No before/after acne resolution. See compliance.md §5.

Iconography

Icon system principle: "Each icon is built from a simple circle - a symbol of rhythm, ritual, and continuity."

• 4 pillar icons: Sleep · Recovery · Beauty · Wellness
• 3 bespoke icons: Events · Community · Scientific Advisory Board

Layout + Grid

• Social grid: 4 columns × 4 rows. Formats: 9:16 (1080×1920), 4:5 (1080×1350), 1:1 (1080×1080)
• Blog thumbnail: 1025×1025px, same 4×4 grid
• Blog banner: 500×1025px, same 4×4 grid. Same image carried through from thumbnail.

Footer

• Style: Multi-column on Onyx background
• Background: #202020 (Onyx) or near-black
• Social links:
  • facebook.com/BONCHARGE
  • instagram.com/boncharge_
  • tiktok.com/@boncharge
  • youtube.com/channel/UCqxnATeLxTdVeGMd5F593PQ
• Newsletter: present (CTA text TBC — footer truncated in static fetch)

Tone + Voice

"Punctuation isn't just grammar - it's rhythm, breath, and emphasis." (Tone of Voice)

• Formality: Mid — approachable but elevated. Premium-adjacent, not stuffy.
• Person: Mostly second person ("you"). First-person plural ("we") on About + brand voice.
• Sentence style: Short punchy headlines (3-word stacked rhythm with full stops). Body copy: clean, declarative, scientifically specific.
• Vocabulary: Mid level — balances science (circadian, melatonin, 660nm, mitochondrial) with consumer wellness language. No jargon dumps.
• Emotional register: Aspirational + confident + calm. Not urgent, not pushy. Trust-building, not persuasion-heavy.

5 Voice Pillars (each with DOs / DON'Ts)

1. Ritual

"True wellness is not a quick fix, it's a practice."

• DO: "A few minutes each evening creates a rhythm your body learns to trust."
• DON'T: "See results overnight." / "Buy now and solve all your problems."

2. Science-Backed

"Every word is grounded in credibility... distilling complex science into digestible language."

• DO: "Red light at 660nm is absorbed by your cells, supporting natural energy production."
• DON'T: "Cures skin problems in just one use." / "Our device modulates mitochondrial photobiomodulation pathways..."

3. Latest in Technology

"Pioneers of wellness-tech... innovation with authority, future-facing yet accessible."

• DO: "Advanced, yet designed for everyday rituals."
• DON'T: "A medical-grade instrument for photobiological modulation."

4. Emotive

"Science may be the foundation, but emotion is what moves people."

• DO: "On busy days, ten minutes with the mask feels like coming back to centre."
• DON'T: "Product contains 120 LEDs." / "Without this, your wellbeing will suffer."

5. Sensory

"Our products are designed to be experienced, and so is our language."

• DO: "Slip into the sauna blanket and feel the day dissolve, warmth, calm, clarity."
• DON'T: "Switch on. Wait 20 minutes. Done."

We Are / We Are NOT

We Are: Assured · Elevated · Clear · Intelligent · Inspiring · Sensory · Grounded · Editorial · Purposeful · Emotive · Innovative · Trustworthy · Captivating · Human

We Are NOT:

• Hype-driven — no shouting, no overpromising, no trend-chasing
• Detached — no ivory-tower distance
• Your bestie — no slang, no emojis, no gossip register
• A professor — no lecturing, no jargon dumps

Preferred Words

• Ritual + rhythm: Ritual · Rhythm · Daily practice · Consistency · Balance · Flow · Grounded · Restore · Renew
• Science-backed: Research · Evidence · Insight · Clarify · Educate · Empower · Cellular energy · Light wavelengths
• Latest tech: Innovation · Pioneering · Cutting-edge · Advanced · Future-facing · Intelligent · Seamless · Intuitive · Accessible

Brand-level Avoid (separate from compliance bans)

• Hype: Miracle, Instant, Cure, Guaranteed, Quick fix, Magic, Revolutionary (unless contextualised)
• Detached: "Device #123", Clinical, Instrument, jargon-heavy ("photobiomodulation pathways")
• Bestie: "Hey babe", "Obsessed", "You guys", "literally can't live without it"
• Professor: Overly academic, dense research without explanation
• Salesy: Avoided where possible. Permitted only in approved sale periods (HOC + CMO sign-off).

Punctuation Rules

• Full stops: confident, short. "Wellbeing is not a quick fix. It's a ritual."
• Commas: flow + rhythm. "Warmth, calm, clarity - all from one ritual."
• Colons + dashes (- not em dash): spotlight + emphasis
• AVOID: ellipses (...), exclamation marks (!), em dashes (—)

Tethrd alignment: Bon Charge's "no em dash, use hyphen with spaces" matches Tethrd's house style exactly.

Voice Samples (verbatim — every creative skill pulls phrasing from these)

1. "Recover Faster. Sleep Deeper. Look Better." — Homepage hero
2. "Science-backed wellness technologies to enhance sleep, recovery, and beauty." — Homepage subheadline
3. "To simplify wellness by uniting the world's most trusted, science-backed technologies on one intuitive platform." — About — mission
4. "Wellness shouldn't be difficult, but should be simple, science driven and deeply effective." — About
5. "Not just for skin, sleep, or recovery, but for coming back to themselves." — About — positioning
6. "You're not investing in a product, you're investing in your way of living." — About
7. "These aren't just stars - they're stories. Behind every 5-star review is someone who felt a shift." — About — reviews framing
8. "The original science-backed eyewear for achieving deep and uninterrupted sleep." — Morris glasses PDP
9. "Eliminating 100% of blue and green light between 400-550nm, boosting evening melatonin production and regulating your circadian rhythm." — Morris PDP body
10. "Pop on your Blue Light Blocking Glasses 2-3 hours before your bedtime to notice the incredible difference in your sleep after just one use." — Morris PDP usage
11. "You can't see near-infrared light. You can't feel it. And that's exactly what makes it worth understanding." — Blog: The Invisible Wavelength
12. "Light might be doing more inside your body than you think." — Blog: microbiome article

Image + Media

• Photography: Studio product on transparent / white backgrounds (PNG with "transparent" in filenames). Plus signature Flare long-exposure red-light imagery for brand storytelling.
• Subjects: Products dominate. Faces / lifestyle in face-mask + glasses imagery. Athlete imagery via Fulham FC partnership.
• Treatment: Full colour, no heavy filters. Natural skin tones.
• Video: YouTube channel active. Likely JS-loaded on PDP / hero.
• Icons: Simple solid-fill SVGs for category badges.

Points of Difference

Defensible

1. Founder-led, 9-year track record from BluBlox to BON CHARGE — Andy + Katie Mant (2016 → present), named + faced founders with 40under40 + APAC CEO of the Year credentials. Most competitor founders are anonymous.
2. In-house Senior Scientific Affairs & Marketing Compliance Officer — Dr Ana Martins (PhD) reviews every claim. Almost no DTC wellness brand has this. Operationally impossible to copy quickly.
3. Bespoke optical laboratory + custom lens tint (100% blocking 400-550nm) — vertical integration on the original product line. Competitors use off-the-shelf tints.
4. Multi-disciplinary Scientific Advisory Board (6+ named PhD/MD experts) — Ana Martins · Dr Chérine Bazzane · Dr Shabana Daya · Dr Susanna Søberg · Shawn Stevenson · Eleanor Hoath. Wider claim envelope without regulatory exposure.

Proof-backed

5. Two products registered as medical devices with TGA + FDA — Blue Light Blocking Glasses (US + AU, melatonin/circadian) + Red Light Toothbrush (US, bleeding gums). Most red light competitors are NOT registered despite saying "FDA approved" colloquially.
6. Three different proof archetypes endorsing the same brand — Dr Mark Hyman (medical authority, 4 bundles) + Diary of a CEO/Steven Bartlett (cultural authority, 1 bundle) + Fulham FC (athletic authority, Official Recovery Partner). No competitor has assembled all three.

Positional

7. The "wellness-tech platform" positioning — 8 collections under one roof (red light + blue light glasses + EMF + PEMF + sauna + holistic beauty + sleep + blue-free lighting). Competitors are mostly single-vertical (Joovv, Mito, Hooga = red light only; BlockBlueLight = glasses only). Drives LTV — once you trust Bon Charge for one ritual, every adjacent product is low-friction up-sell.

Executional

8. Editorial brand aesthetic + voice — premium positioning anchored in 9-colour warm-neutral palette + Instrument Sans/Serif + 5 voice pillars + explicit punctuation rules. Reads like a wellness magazine, not a supplement brand. Supports premium pricing ($199 toothbrush → $3,349 sauna dome).

Strongest Leads for Paid Creative

🎯 LEAD 1 — The "scientific restraint" wedge (combines #2 + #5)

"In a category full of 'FDA approved' lies, we have the actual registration AND the in-house PhD who stops us saying it."

Topical (customers wising up to wellness overclaim), defensible (competitors can't copy without firing marketing teams), generates infinite hook variations, sells the premium price, perfectly aligned with voice pillar #2 (Science-Backed: "Our voice doesn't overpromise").

🎯 LEAD 2 — The "wellness protocol, not just one product" wedge (POD #7)

"Your morning sauna, your evening glasses, your weekly red light, your nightly sleep mask — all from the brand 400,000+ wellness-obsessed customers already trust."

Structural differentiator competitors literally can't run (single-vertical). Drives LTV expansion (Hyman + Bartlett bundles validate strategic priority). Anchors every "should I switch?" objection. Creates persona-x-product mapping logic for /creative-brief weekly.

Compliance Constraints (CRITICAL — read every brief)

Bon Charge enforces TGA-strictest standards globally. Compliance Officer: Dr Ana Martins (ana@boncharge.com).

Hierarchy of truth: User Manual > Compliance training docs > Website > Promotional materials.

Full rule set in compliance.md (83KB, 12 sections). Every creative skill (static-ads, video-ads, ugc-script-writer, full-landing-page-builder, performance-reporting, creative-brief, creative-strategy) must read compliance.md before output.

Top 5 absolute prohibitions:

1. Never "FDA approved" / "TGA approved" — even though competitors say it
2. Never "clinically proven", "100% effective", "safe", "guaranteed"
3. Never "treats / heals / cures / prevents / fixes / eliminates" any condition
4. Never advertise to children (only to parents about kids' products)
5. Never name competitors or compare directly

Top 5 reframes (use these instead):

• "Therapy" → "session", "ritual", "routine"
• "Increases collagen" → "supports skin elasticity, texture, firmness"
• "Treats acne" → "supports clearer-looking skin"
• "Clinically proven" → "evidence-backed", "scientifically demonstrated"
• "Detoxes" → "supports natural cleansing processes"

Image + Media Compliance Quick-Rules

• All visuals: product shown per user manual (e.g. protective goggles if manual requires)
• Sauna content: must show hydration (water nearby)
• No children in product use (except blue-light glasses for kids → market to parents)
• No before/after photos showing acne/skin condition resolution
• Frame sweating as natural body process (never "detox")
• Per-product visual rules: see compliance.md §5

Linked Foundation Files

• Product catalogue: products.md (10 heroes locked, 394 active SKUs, full Shopify enrichment)
• Compliance rule set: compliance.md (83KB, 12 sections, Dr Ana's authoritative master)
• Visual preview: brand-guide-preview.html (v2 — verified by Jay 2026-04-24)
• Working notes (provenance): _working/brand-identity-from-pdfs.md, _working/points-of-difference.md
• Assets: assets/ (logos: 3 PNGs · brand-docs: 2 PDFs · fonts: Google Fonts CDN · vector logos + favicon: pending Phase 5b)
• Compliance docs (raw): compliance/ (8 PDFs/DOCX/PPTX + 28 product user manuals + Dr Ana training transcript)
• Raw exports: Shopify products 04-raw/shopify/ · Judge.me reviews 04-raw/judge-me/ · Reamaze CS tickets 04-raw/customer-service/
• Per-brand integration config: ../../integrations.json

Pending (acceptable per skill rules — collect when needed)

• Vector logo files (.svg / .ai / .eps) — primary, secondary, icon-only, lockups
• Favicon high-res — separate from web favicon if exists
• Mobile-optimised email-signature wordmark variant — referenced in Brand Guideline
• Product photography for the 10 heroes — for /static-ads + /video-ads (white-bg PNG transparent + lifestyle + packaging shots per hero)
• Founder photography — Andy + Katie portraits + lifestyle for VSLs, founder-story creative
• Scientific Advisory Board photography — for landing pages + email nurture
• Light bulb specs — wattage, lumens, colour temp, base type (E26/E27)
• Bundle composition — which products are in each bundle (Shopify follow-up)

Downstream Skills That Read This File

• /audience-onboard — voice + tone for persona language; verbatim mining from Judge.me + Reamaze
• /competitor-onboard — positioning baseline (defensible PODs as differentiation anchors)
• /market-onboard — Schwartz sophistication diagnosis (this brand sits in Stage 4-5 wellness tech)
• /offer-onboard — bundles already mapped (Hyman + Bartlett); product economics
• /own-account-onboard — Meta Ads baseline against this brand identity
• /trend-onboard — wellness/biohacking TikTok hooks
• /creative-strategy — PODs + voice pillars drive angle generation
• /creative-brief — weekly briefs reference voice pillars + compliance bans + hero priorities
• /static-ads, /video-ads — colour palette + Instrument Sans/Serif + voice samples + visual compliance
• /ugc-script-writer — voice pillars + DOs/DON'Ts + compliance bans for every script
• /full-landing-page-builder — complete brand identity + Bijou shape + photography categories
• /performance-reporting — brand styling for client-facing reports (Onyx primary, Linen Light bg, Instrument Sans)