Barrie House Coffee Roasters
Designers | Telly Lau, Gene Barone, John C. Fallon
Location | Elmsford, NY, USA
Launch date | September 29, 2020
Barrie House re-launched our complete coffee line in 2020. Research identified an opportunity to offer a premium, Fair Trade Organic coffee at a price point below the competition.
Our design goal was to communicate a richer, more premium brand. Barrie House is a family business that has been selling coffee since 1934. We wanted to update the brand look and feel without losing its history. We updated the logo to be bolder, more contemporary, and easier to read. But we kept original brand elements as a bridge. And added three beans to represent the three generations and the three brothers that own the company.
Another goal was for the packaging to stand out on the retail shelf and be unique. Our Chief Marketing Officer referenced a burgundy wristband inscribed with the Spanish phrase “This Color, No Spots.” Some coffee farms use this wristband as they pick the coffee cherries, reminding the pickers that only ripe cherries that match the wristband color and had no spots should be picked.
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This wristband was the inspiration for our use of burgundy as our primary brand color (offering a contrast to the browns and tans that are commonly associated with coffee). We added a secondary gold color to complement the burgundy, reinforce the premium positioning, and give a nod to the owners’ family name, Goldstein.
The packaging itself has a silk-touch finish for a more premium, luxurious feel. And because we wanted consumers to easily distinguish between products in the Barrie House offering, we used bold colors for the labels to differentiate between our various coffees and blends. These labels also feature the Fair Trade and Organic logos prominently, as well as specific stories and tasting notes for each coffee. The family’s history in the coffee business is summarized on the back.
