The Sprudge Report - Design Week
Looking back at some of our favorite features over the past nine years of our Coffee Design series.
Welcome to Design Week!
Since 2014 we’ve run a regularly published feature series dedicated to coffee design, inviting our readers around the world to learn more about the design process, get inspired, find outstanding designers and branding agencies, and think deeper about how design enriches the coffee experience at every step of the story. Over the course of the week, we showcased some of the most exciting and popular articles from the series.
Beautiful bags
We’ve seen so many wonderful bag designs from roasters around the world in the nine years in the Coffee Design feature series. From Bellingham to Bristol, San Diego to Sydney, Phoenix to Philly, from the Big Island to the British Isles, our globetrotting series has featured some of the biggest and most innovative names in the industry.
Patron of the arts
Seasonal releases and limited edition coffees are a perfect opportunities for roasters to collaborate with local artists and designers to create something special to commemorate the occasion. Camber and Equator Coffees had two of our favorites, and we can’t wait to see what other coffee companies and artists join forces to create.
Cute jute
It’s high time that green coffee got a bit of a thoughtful makeover, and that’s exactly what Raw Material has done with their jute bags. Brightly colored with custom emblems chosen by each of the over 20 partner produces they work with, Raw Material’s jute bags are show stoppers.
Boxes!
The bag is not the only coffee delivering vehicle. Sturdy and eye-catching, boxes have become quite the popular alternative for many roasters. From the straightforward box from Atlanta’s Valor Coffee to the VHS-inspired boxes by Belfast’s Process Coffee to the Saturday morning cartoon playfulness of the cereal box-themed boxes from Portland’s Sunday Coffee Project, boxes have become the perfect six-sided canvas for design creativity.
A one-way ticket for the one-way valve
Consider the one-way valve. Allowing for roasted coffee to degas without making the packaging all foamy and bloaty, the one-way valve has historically been considered a necessity. But what this new bag from LA’s Demitasse presupposes is, maybe it isn’t?
The shape of coffee design to come
Some roasters have thought even further outside the (coffee) box with their packaging. LA’s iconic Bub & Grandma’s Bread brought a modern spin to the classic tin. Switzerland’s Vaga Bon Cafe found inspiration in wine packaging with their cork-topped bottles. And Scotland’s Manifesto Coffee invites people to crack open a coldie with their tallboy aluminum can packages.
New job listings from Sprudge Jobs
Joe Coffee - Barista - New York, NY
Sweet Maria’s Coffee - Assistant Warehouse Manager - Emeryville, CA
Tony’s Coffee - Lead Production Manager - Bellingham, WA
Compass Coffee - Logistics Manager - Washington, DC
New cafes on Sprudge Maps
Here are new cafes discoverable on our global cafe portal Sprudge Maps. Register your cafe for free—thanks to the support of La Marzocco and Pacific Barista Series.
K Brew - Knoxville, TN
Edda Coffee Roasters - Cleveland, OH
Radical Roasters - Bristol, UK
Do you have a news tip? Feedback? A funny joke? Send us an e-mail, use the contact form on Sprudge, leave a message at 1-888-55-SPRUDGE, or send us a letter at P.O. Box 3943 Portland, OR 97218.