Coffee Design Awards
Great coffee is synonymous with great design, and increasingly serves a critical function in distinguishing specialty coffee. Perhaps more than ever, coffee shops are putting a massive focus on design: the drive to distinguish a specialty café from the “Central Perk/coffeehouse” vibe of the 1990s is largely being achieved by way of brand, architecture, packaging, and signage. Coffee cups are now lifestyle choices, stores are designed with Instagram in mind, and packaging is being reimagined as a kitchen ornament—something to be shown off and not just thrown in a cupboard.
The Coffee Design Awards, formerly known as the Design Lab Showcase, is a platform for showcasing great design in specialty coffee. First debuted at the SCA(A)’s 2016 Specialty Coffee Expo in Atlanta with a focus on coffee packaging, it has since grown to include drinking vessels, spaces (both educational and retail), and branding.
The Coffee Design Awards returns as a show feature at SCA trade shows in 2024. Entries will be on physical display on the show floor and permanent digital display on SCA Design in Coffee platform.
The 2024 Coffee Design Awards Competitions
Competition Categories
Branding
For this category, we are recognizing the brands, identities and visual environments that companies in coffee use to stand out. It’s about the logos, the style guides, the stationery, the posters, the flyers, the digital comms - anything and everything that's not the product itself or the space.
Packaging
For this category, we are identifying some of the most compelling coffee packaging designs from the past year.
Spaces
For this category, we are showcasing designs of places for making, teaching, serving coffee.
Explore
Previous Winners
2019
Specialty Coffee Expo
Spaces | Great Goods Coffee Roasters | Michael Hsu Office of Architecture
Vessels | KRUVE EQ Glassware Line by KRUVE Inc. | Michael Vecchiarelli
Packaging | Blue Bottle Coffee Can | Elaine Fong and Neil Day
Branding | Rishi Tea | Studio MPLS
World of Coffee
Spaces | Carrow Coffee Roastery | Carrow Coffee Roasters
Vessels | Champion’s Signature Collection | Ben Sutton x Loveramics x Playset Coffee
Packaging | Simplo | Planeta Design
Branding | Café Nahual | Gustavo Quintana
2018
Spaces | Kickapoo Coffee Roasters | Caleb Nicholes (lead), Allison Sandbeck, Jessica Hooper, TJ Semanchin, Brendan Karlstad, Paul Deutsch
Packaging | Elixir Coffee | Mike Smith, Smith and Diction
Vessels | Brumi Ceramic Cup | Soma