49th Parallel Coffee Roasters

Designer: Roger Dario
Project Type: Produced, Commercial
Client 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters
Packaging Content: Coffee Beans
Location: Canada

Premier Direct Trade Coffee Purveyor Unveils Redesign

Today, North American direct-trade coffee company, 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters, has unveiled a new brand mark as well as a wholesale and retail-facing redesign, ranging from bags to labels and mugs to cups.

A year-long collaborative process between 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters and designer Roger Dario (Google, Cartoon Network, Bench), the redesign is an update of the brand’s clean and consistent look that marks its evolution from a popular regional direct-trade coffee purveyor to a North America-wide brand, available from coast to coast in both the United States and Canada.

“Our main goal was a cleaner line art style to highlight the ‘49’ in our name — which refers to the longest unguarded border in the world, between Canada and the United States,” says 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters founder, Vince Piccolo. “We wanted to recognize and capitalize on our ongoing expansions on both sides of that line and so we chose a straightforward, mercantile look for our primary mark.”

“In designing the bag we wanted the packaging to look contained, like everything was in it’s right spot,” Piccolo continues. Label placement and vertical running text create a frame space around the primary mark and that same concept is used on the back of the bag as well, to create a unified whole.

“However, when it came to redesigning our mugs, we wanted something more playful,” Piccolo says. “The new diamond branding captures the excitement and beauty of the coffee farms and grower families we partner with to produce our coffee.”

On the new mugs, available for sale online and in partner cafés across North America, coffee beans and coffee leaves create a floral pattern against 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters’ signature blue background. “The blue wasn’t going to change,” says Piccolo. “That was the colour of my first Bianchi bicycle and will always be a part of the brand.”

Redesigned bags, cups and mugs are currently available at select café and restaurant partners and online, and will continue to be rolled out in the coming months.