If you are starting up a coffee shop and are looking to create an identity for your business, or you have been operating your coffee shop for a while and are looking to give your brand a facelift, getting a good logo is very important. Your branding process is not complete without a good coffee shop logo. It is the image people see when your coffee shop pops up in their minds.
A good coffee shop logo should represent the identity of your coffee shop and convey a message from your business to your customers. It should be graphic, simple, and unique. Your logo should leave a memorable impression in the minds of your customers. Let us discuss these qualities in greater detail, and how to incorporate them into your coffee shop logo.
Simplicity.
Making your coffee shop logo as simple as possible increases the chances of it being easily recognizable, timeless and memorable. Your coffee shop logo does not have to contain intricate designs to make it pass a message across effectively. On the contrary, intricate designs do the opposite.
Uniqueness.
Your coffee shop logo should express the unique identity of your brand. It also helps you to stand out from the competition as your business will be easily recognizable to customers when they see your logo on marketing materials.
Versatility.
A good coffee shop logo can be used on different marketing materials and should be easily scalable. For instance, if you have to print your logo on Styrofoam cups, it should still be as effective as if printed on a banner for the front of your shop. This also applies to web devices. It should also be effective on colored, white and black backgrounds.
Apart from scale, a good coffee shop logo should be timeless. Having a timeless logo will save you from having to change your logo if there is any need to do a rebranding in the future. This means that you can create a long-lasting impression on people’s minds with your brand. This has a huge advantage on the growth of your business. It gives people the impression that despite being in business for a particular length of time, you have retained the values with which you started your coffee shop.
Memorable.
A logo is the heart of your branding efforts and should leave people with an impression that they will always remember. Keeping your coffee shop logo simple can help you achieve this.
Relevance.
A good coffee shop logo should be relevant to the identity of your coffee shop. It should resonate with your target customers.
Tips for designing your coffee shop logo.
There are a couple of factors that determine how a logo turns out eventually. Sometimes, a ‘trial and error method’ is usually involved to arrive at the perfect logo design for your coffee shop. If you are designing your coffee shop logo by yourself or you simply want to be able to judge whether your graphic designer has done a good job for you, the following tips will come in handy.
Understand your brand identity.
In designing your logo, knowing your brand identity cannot be overemphasized. Your brand identity plays a huge role in making sure that you come up with a logo that is unique to your type of coffee shop. Without properly understanding your brand identity, you cannot carve out a personality for your coffee shop. This means that your logo will lack the appropriate message it should send to those who see it.
To understand your brand identity, you should know why you started your coffee shop, the values that influence how you run your coffee shop, the type of customers you cater to, what sets you apart from the competition, how your values affect your customer experience and how your customers would describe your business.
Look to your business name for ideas.
If you put in the effort in picking a good and unique business name for your coffee shop, it can become a helpful source of inspiration for your logo. The words and idea behind your business name can dictate the color, symbols, or words on your logo.
Check out your competitors’ logos.
Another source of inspiration for your logo can be your competitors’ logos. This does not mean that you will be stealing their concept. Instead, you should use them as a means to judge what works for your particular type of coffee shop, and what does not. While at it, also look out for what differentiates your coffee shop from theirs in terms of the message you get from their logos. This can also help you to easily identify the personality of your business.
Decide on the type of design you want.
In addition to taking the steps above, 99 Designs writes that there are seven major types of logo designs. You can either choose to use one of them or combine two of them in your design. Whatever you do, make sure that it resonates with the brand you are looking to create.
Lettermarks or monogram logos.
These are minimalist types of logos and contain only letters. They are usually used by businesses with long names who use their initials as their logo. This is not a very expressive design for your coffee shop and should be adopted only after careful consideration. Some examples are CNN, HP, etc.
Wordmarks or logotypes.
This is also a straight forward type of logo but is more expressive. It usually involves using the words or initials of your business name, bxut with an attractive and sometimes playful typography. This gives more personality to the logo. It is a good way to give expression to a witty coffee shop business name.
Pictorial marks or logo symbols.
Pictorial logos are the types of logo that we are most familiar with. They make use of icons or symbols that is easily associated with your brand by everyone. They are usually combined with wordmarks or lettermarks. These symbols can either be very simple or intricate. If you opt for this logo type, make sure to choose a symbol that relates the most to your coffee shop brand.
Abstract logo marks.
With the right design, it is easier to achieve uniqueness using an abstract logo. This type of logo uses geometric shapes to create certain moods or feeling. While this type of logo design does not immediately show a relationship with what your coffee shop is about, it can be a very effective way of sending a brand message across to your audience. To achieve the appropriate design for your coffee shop, find out what different geometric logo types mean. This logo design can also be paired with a wordmark or lettermark.
Mascots.
Using a mascot logo is an easy way to give personality to your coffee shop. If, for instance, your business name is an actual person’s name, using a mascot in a logo to represent the person is a good idea. Mascots are usually fun, cartoon-like characters that easily make your coffee shop feel homey and warm to customers.
Combination mark.
As the words imply, this is a logo design type that combines a symbol with using the business name as the wordmark. The text is usually placed under the symbol, beside it, or on both sides of the symbol. It helps to achieve uniqueness and makes the logo easily recognizable.
Emblem.
Emblem logos are similar to combination mark logos as they also involve combining a symbol with text. The difference, however, is that the text is usually integrated into the symbol to look like a badge or crest. A vivid example is the Starbucks logo.
Experiment with colors and backgrounds.
After you have decided on which type and style of logo to go for, see how the design looks with different colors. Most coffee shops use earthy colors like brown, beige, or tan; and other natural colors like green. Colors are known to trigger certain psychological responses. For example, the red color is said to be associated with hunger. This is why many restaurants incorporate it into their branding. In choosing colors, go for what resonates with your brand the most. Try different color combinations before settling for the most suitable one.
Go for the appropriate font type and size.
In determining this, your main aim should be readability. People should find it easy to read the text on your logo even when it is scaled down for use on small marketing media like business cards. Also make sure that different lines of text align with each other in terms of length, font size and type. This creates an impression of harmony to whoever looks at your logo.
To learn more about advertisements for coffee shops, click here!
See what works.
Assess your final result with a critical eye to see if it fits the brand you want to create. You can seek for a second opinion from your employees, prospective customers, family, or friends. Do away with any bad ideas and make necessary adjustments. If you are working with a professional graphic designer, point out areas you want improvements on if any.
Finally, your coffee shop logo does not have to be a cliché with a coffee cup and probably some steam curling out at the top. With some effort and the tips you have just been equipped with, you can have a logo that tells a compelling story about your brand.
Frequently Asked Questions
The cost of getting your coffee shop logo depends on a number of factors. According to Looka.com, a logo can range anywhere between 2 dollars to above 2,500 dollars. This is a pretty wide range and can be narrowed down by factors such as your location, whether you will be designing your logo yourself or getting a graphic designer to do it, tools you will make use of such as online templates, software, etc.
The main features of a coffee shop logo are: a unique design that tells your brand story, an appropriate style, your business name, and a practical combination of colors. You may also add your tag line if you want to.
To learn more on how to start your own coffee shop checkout my startup documents here
Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult a legal expert to address your specific needs.
Hi! I’m Shawn Chun
My adventure in coffee began when I first launched my first coffee shop back in the early 2000s. I had to figure out so many things on my own and to make it worse within 2 years of opening two large corporate coffee chains moved in just blocks away from me!
As I saw smaller and even some larger coffee shops in the neighborhood slowly lose customers to these giant coffee chains and slowly close up shop, I knew that I had to start getting creative…or go out of business.
I (like you may be) knew the coffee industry well. I could make the best latte art around and the foam on my caps was the fluffiest you have ever seen. I even had the best state-of-the-art 2 group digital Nuova Simonelli machine money could buy. But I knew that these things alone would not be enough to lure customers away from the name brand established coffee shops.
Eventually, through lots of trial and error as well as perseverance and creativity I did find a way to not only survive but also thrive in the coffee/espresso industry even while those corporate coffee chains stayed put. During those years I learned to adapt and always faced new challenges. It was not always easy, however, in the end, I was the sole survivor independent coffee shop within a 10-mile radius of my location. Just two corporate coffee chains and I were left after that year. All told the corporate coffee chains took down over 15 small independent coffee shops and kiosks and I was the last one standing and thriving.
Along the years I meet others with the same passion for coffee and I quickly learned that it is not only “how good a barista is” that makes a coffee shop successful, but the business side of coffee as well.
Hence why I started this website you are on now. To provide the tools and resources for up and coming coffee shop owners to gain that vital insight and knowledge on how to start a coffee shop successfully.
Stick around, browse through my helpful blog and resources and enjoy your stay! With lots of LATTE LOVE!
Shawn
