Fig. 1 Combination mark
Grown in the shade of the mountains
In Brief
Apolonia Coffee is a bean-to-cup roaster with deep roots in the area of Esquipulas, Guatemala. With life-long bonds to the region’s farmers, Apolonia Coffee set forth to make a product for the premium market that was sustainable, responsible, and gave back to the local farmers and community.
Scope of work
- Brand identity
- Packaging
- Merchandise and collateral
Fig. 2 Packaging system
Apolonia Coffee intended to focus on, and occupy an overlooked area of the market designated “premium.”
With a price point that sits above commercial supermarket coffee lines yet below that of specialty or craft offerings, Apolonia would be a responsible, local competitor to several other large scale national coffee chains.
Additionally, a key focus was appealing to an audience with South American roots that desire a way to connect with, and support the communities they consider home. This area of the market is heavily connected with the consumption of coffee often overlooked for trendier, more visible demographics.
We set out to create a brand identity system that would establish the quality and craft of the product while remaining humble and hardworking.
Within the South American community, flags are important. Because of this, we took inspiration from the Guatemalan flag for color and paired it with hardworking materials like cardboard and craft paper stocks. As Esquipulas is a Unesco World Heritage site it has a rich history to draw from. We created a series of icons for the bean, the coffee leaf, the sun, and the mountain along with a framework and pattern that at once draw on the region’s Mayan heritage and the “Apolonia” name’s Greek origins.
Fig. 3 Retail gift box
Fig. 4 Guayabo Especial and Pinalito labels
As Apolonia Coffee would be working exclusively, and directly with a variety of small Guatemalan growers, their product line could frequently change. This required a packaging system that was infinitely adaptable and didn’t require a huge investment in stock quantities for any singular product.
Our solution includes a printed kraft colored, flat bottom bag with a standardized white foil hot stamp that can be individualized per product by applying a variety of diamond shaped labels. This allows the labels to be easily changed for various product lines and used on a variety of bag sizes for minimal cost.
