Swainson's Organic Coffee
Identity & Brand Project
Spring 2022
Project Goal
The assignment was to create a series of posters that represent a brand that would be advertised to a particular audience. Once the brand and audience were created
the next project was to take that same product/brand
and advertise it with a different audience in mind. A
"Brand Pivot".
Audience
Those who care greatly about the impact of their coffee consumption and the impact that has on animals. Another audience that intersects with the audience above would be coffee-drinking birders. The best time to see birds is early in the morning, and coffee is needed.
Process
What is something I would want to see in the world? After finding an article that mentions the bird-friendly growing process for coffee, I dove into information on the Smithsonian site. I selected a migrator bird that is impacted by unsustainable coffee growing practices and also had the name of a famous ornithologist.
Why Swainson's?
William Swainson is a 17th-century ornithologist. An ornithologist is someone who studies birds. He has several bird species named after him but for this brand, I focused on Swainson's thrush. Swainson's Thrush is a shy bird that summers in northern North America and migrates to spend their winter in northern South America, where many coffee plantations are located. This bird perfectly encapsulates the reason Bird-Friendly coffee is important. It also gives the cause a face that connects back to bird conservation history and people who love birds like William Swainson. Swainson's thrush is currently listed as the least concern but is on the decline due to habitat loss, in summer and winter locations.
What is Bird-Friendly Coffee?
A video explanation can be found on YouTube and the Smithsonian Bird Friendly Site. It gives context behind the inspiration for this brand and why a Bird Friendly Certification is important.
Original Posters
Using the brand I created for this project I updated and expanded the brand.
The final posters show the relationship between the consumer's coffee and the birds that live in and around coffee plants. Getting rid of all the in-between that would emotionally and physically separate us from the impacts of our consumption choices. As the coffee is drunk the bird becomes more real. Seemingly the bird supports your decision to drink
this coffee.
Original Brand Pivot Posters
Same Brand but with a different audience, and design approach. This focuses on the feeling of enjoying coffee instead of on its environmental impact. The coffee gals make the coffee an interesting and beautiful secret.