Ground is a sustainable coffee shop & roastery committed to supporting global independent coffee farmers in their ongoing struggle against climate change.
The Work
Concept, Logo, Brand Identity, Packaging, Shop Design & Collateral, Website Presence, Advertising, Copywriting, Art Direction
Inspired by
The stories of family farmers fighting for their generations owned businesses in South America. With the effects of climate change taking a massive toll, farmers have no choice but to abandon their crops or find a way to move to new land, both of which result in major financial burdens. Coffee is a staple in my home, with my father having to drink a cup at the exact time each day or disastrous consequences ensue. With a similar story in houses all across America, I wondered as to why the detrimental effects of climate change on their favorite drink wasn’t a more widespread conversation. With this brand, I aimed to bring light to not only the future of coffee but the reality of what is happening to its farmers right now.
The Process
How does a single design student working on an imaginary project begin to tackle the global issues that truly frighten her, like climate change? I decided it was by starting with something small, something I know, coffee. When diving into my research about the effects of climate change on coffee farming, I was hit with a wave of stories of families struggling to continue their way of life. With rising temperatures and fickle crops, coffee plants that have grown in the same places on the same farms for over a century are no longer fit for the environment that they are loctated in.
The Process
These farmers need money for shade trees, variant crops, and relocation that they just don’t have. My goal was to build a brand that could support the farmers with these issues while marketing to the people who may be ignorant of them. To do this, I needed all aspects of the brand, from the logo to the packaging, to have a personal touch that told the stories of these people and their struggles. Using a photographic collage style, a warm color palette, and varied texture, I was able to build a brand that I believe could be the start to a more sustainable and ethical future in coffee.
