Client
Local Grounds
Year
2022
Category
Food & Beverage
Role
Communication Designer
Visual Designer
Responsibilities
Research
Competitive Analysis
Creative Direction
Naming
Logo
Brand & Identity
Marketing Collateral
Overview
Through the reimagining of a brand, The Whole Bean, the Local Grounds coffee shop concept was developed. Project deliverables include a complete brand identity suite, a preliminary design system with a style guide outlining color scheme, type scale, brand images, a logo, icons, and a social media header, used to create digital and print marketing materials.
The Challenge
56% of coffee shops fail within the first five years. This statistic is eye-opening when considering that the top two reasons for closure are "unprepared for ownership" and "lack of brand identity." While I can't impact the first, I can thoughtfully create a brand identity that will make a lasting first impression.
The Solution
Ensuring the brand communicates a uniform identity from conception to execution by creating an identity system before launch. As they enter the market, this foundation will allow Local Grounds to overcome one of coffee shop owners' main challenges. Also, utilizing a solid basis of UX principles within my designs will lay the groundwork for the future creation of a complete design system.
The Process
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The Journey
When developing the concept for Local Coffee, it needed to include the entire design process and the production of all digital and print assets. Onboarding began with understanding the complete business vision, and in the discovery phase, it became clear that the proposed location of the coffee shop was the focal point. This insight provided the foundation for the Local Coffees brand and the decision to drop the working name, The Whole Bean. The name needed to balance sincerity and warmth with a touch of modernity to create a voice for its mission statement. When customers enter Local Grounds, they should feel like this is "the place" you want to come to every day for your favorite cup of coffee, the place you love to grab a snack and catch up with a friend or get some work done. Ultimately, the brand needs to have a little something for everyone that leaves customers feeling valued and appreciated. In moving forward with the research phase, I defined primary personas to understand the customer and created a competitive analysis for future brand applications. I continued in the creation of visual and digital asses that would provide building blocks for the style guide while maintaining a clear voice for the brand: welcoming, genuine and modern. These elements included: • Logo • Colors • Typography • Pattern & Texture • Imagery & Photography • Illustration & Iconography • Layout & Composition In conjunction with outlining the implementation of creative brand touchpoints, the development of these assets wrapped up this project with the included deliverables: • Renaming • Mission & Values • Statements • Logo • Custom Icons • Brand Identity Suite/ Preliminary Design Systems • Digital & Print Collateral
Discovery
Defining a brand:
purpose, personality, mission, and target audience
WHY WE ARE HERE
We are your neighbors & friends. Our desire is to share our passtion for coffee & add value to the local community.
BRAND PERSONALITY
• Sincere
• Genuine
• Inviting
• Friendly
It’s important for Local Grounds to convey a genuine and thoughtful approach to coffee culture for the longevity of serving customers in a popular neighborhood. Local grounds is a place you want to come to every day for your favorite cup of coffee. A place you will grab your favorite local snack and catch up with a friend. Whether heading to work or the outdoor seating, they have a little something to offer everyone.
To provide a premium product with a local feel. We are passionate about making a great cup of coffee every time.
The Target Audience
We work from home and need a change of scenery. Coming to our favorite coffee shop for our daily driver is what gets us our of bed in the morning.
We are students taking a study break at our neighborhood coffee shop. We meet up with friends and enjoy the local atmosphere.
We enjoy spending free time with our friends and family. We always know the best place to grab a great cup of coffee.
We're young professionals looking for a relaxed place to meet outside of the office.
Research
Understanding the target audience:
customer behaviors & economic trends
Who is at the coffee shop?
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Under 30 are identified as the most influential customer in the coffee shop market.
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25 to 34 y/o spend the most of any demographic.
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Millennials tend to spend more on premium beverage brands.
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32% of millennials report drinking an espresso-based drink in the past day, the highest of any generation.
* stat references available upon request.
Competitive Analysis
Additional competitive analysis | Mobile-First website (coming soon) project piece for future brand applications.
Coffee
Shop
Personas
Design
style, aesthetics, and visual language
Mood Board
"Design is thinking made visual."
From discovery to the concept, the mood board is a key element to bring your brand to life.
Identity Design
This question might sound strange, but have you ever felt something before you actualized it? That was my experience with designing this logo. Through the research process, I thought about neighborhood coffee shops I've visited from coast to coast, and I couldn't get this image out of my mind. Gold accents that are almost pinstriped, geometric but also fluid, and visually evoked nostalgia. I realized I was thinking east coast, the 1920s, The Great Gatsby, and coffee shops filled with revolutionary ideas. But, I also knew it would need a heavy dose of modernity. These ideas began to form a distinct picture that sent me on the hunt for the perfect Art Deco style with a touch of Neuvo-inspired typeface.
Top Picks
The Clear Winner:
Antiga
My deciding factor was how Antiga's glyphs formed the Local Grounds name. The way 'R' and 'O' nested together and the roundness of certain characters gave the font an open and inviting feel. The narrow letters and slender lines balanced the typeface for a more modern aesthetic.
Typography, Icons & Color
When having a bold display font front and center, I knew my body text had to be understated. After pages of filtered typefaces, I found a modern take on a classic ATF.
A modern typeface in the tradition of 19th-century grotesque.
ATF Franklin Gothic Book
What can I say?! I'm a sucker for a great typeface!
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz0123456789!@#$%^&*()
Logo Design
A key component to a solid identity.
With fonts selected, I researched several sites for inspiration. I knew that I wanted the logo to be easily recognizable in its shortened forms and still maintain the inviting and genuine feel of the brand.
Once I settled on a mug as part of the design, the idea of it being crop off and continuing into the name gave it a modern feel and forward movement. Each piece flowed into the other as if the divider was a doorway. I also kept the lines narrow to complement the display font and added the beans that I would carry through the brand for continuity.
Having these elements in place simplified the designing of a custom icon set.
The Importance of Color
As someone who relies more on my visual sense, I immediately consider what colors work best for a project. Regarding the theory that color is deeply intertwined with our experiences, it only makes sense that how people perceive the visual aspects of a brand can make or break its success. Of course, I ultimately let the research and accessibility be the deciding factors.
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The color strategy for Local Grounds was designed to evoke a sense of nestalgia and belonging. The touches of gold show warmth and welcoming and the almost black is grounded and bold. The taupe conveys organic and down-to-earth and finally, the off white balances the entire palette.
Connecting The Pieces
Patterns
Patterns provide meaning and context in our lives to the massive amounts of information we engage daily. That's why building a unified pattern system into the Local Grounds brand identity was a key focus. By creating these connections, Local Grounds will be immediately recognizable and expand our visual language across multiple forms of media and platforms.
