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Joe Coffee
Readying a third wave coffee brand for the national stage
Joe Coffee
Readying a third wave coffee brand for the national stage
Since its founding in 2003, the family-run Joe Coffee Company has become a cherished fixture in New York City. For many New Yorkers, the chain was where they first experienced the pleasures of Third Wave coffee, a movement that takes java as seriously as oenophiles take wine. It grew to 15 locations around the city because it was just as committed to being a comfortable neighborhood fixture as it was to latte art.
Joe Coffee was acquired by Danny Meyer’s Union Square Hospitality Group in 2017. They had ambitious plans to duplicate the success they’d achieved with Shake Shack: take a beloved Big Apple franchise national without losing what hometown devotees loved about it.
Evolution of a logo: The first three images were Joe Coffee’s wordmark when they were a New York City institution. Godfrey Dadich’s revised version on the right is designed with a nationwide franchise in mind.
Godfrey Dadich was tasked with helping them clarify their strategy and brand identity as they geared up for the expansion. After internal and external stakeholder interviews, a brand health audit in key markets, and competitive research, we devised a strategy that centered on “The Heart of the Village”. From Stonewall to the Voice, Washington Square to the Public Theater, the Village has always celebrated differences and the creative spirit. It’s where Joe Coffee started, at the corner of Waverly and Gay.
We built Joe Coffee’s mark around the cozy communal benches in every shop. Its inviting serifs, optimistic curves, and open angles speak to Joe Coffee’s commitment to fostering strong communities.
Every Joe Coffee reflects the heart of the people and places it serves. The shop is a welcome respite from the rest of the world, where everyone can feel comfortable and accepted. It’s a place where the people are always warm, the vibe is always genuine, and the coffee is always fantastic.
Godfrey Dadich designed a new Joe Coffee identity with this strategy in mind. We settled on an icon that symbolized this sense of communal enjoyment: the wooden benches found at every shop. We created a wordmark ecosystem that better serves the expansion of the brand beyond New York City.
We created an accompanying brand book to help Joe Coffee deploy our designs across every aspect of their brand identity.
Meyer felt the shade of blue that Joe Coffee had been using in their logo was too soft, neutral, and innocent. He felt it needed more New York attitude – more swagger. After a great deal of exploration, we hit upon a shade that we dubbed Everyday Blue. It feels optimistic and welcoming, with an extra shot of Big Apple attitude.
When we were exploring colors, we kept in mind that we needed a hue that would pop on different forms of substrates–earth toned paper, bright white stock, glossy packaging, fabric. We created a hierarchy of colors for the variety of roasts, and explored different ways of surfacing information about the coffee—origin, elevation, washed or natural.
Joe Coffee’s beans don’t just feature our mark–they employ our recommended color scheme, which is designed to help differentiate products.
In addition to redesigning their mark, we tweaked the shade of blue
that Joe Coffee employed. We hit upon something that feels
optimistic and welcoming, with an extra shot of Big Apple attitude.
that Joe Coffee employed. We hit upon something that feels
optimistic and welcoming, with an extra shot of Big Apple attitude.
We also authored an 80-page brand book that included an explanation of Joe Coffee’s mission, vision, and values along with a complete visual style guide, color palettes, and photography guide.
The work we did with Joe Coffee is now integral to every aspect of the company’s look and feel. They employ our mark and our color schemes on everything from their product packaging to thier cups, displays, and merchandise like bags and mugs.
