Starbucks Reserve Merchandise

2019 Tokyo Sakura Collection

Cherry blossoms, also known as sakura in Japan, are the small, delicate pink flowers produced by cherry blossom trees. The springtime bloom is a lavish spectacle but is also remarkably brief; after only two weeks they fall off the trees like snow. The Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Tokyo is perfectly located along the Meguro River in Nakameguro, which comes to life as the cherry blossom trees along the river bloom each Spring. For this Spring collection I was inspired by depictions of Sakura trees in traditional Japanese art and simplified markings reminiscent of Japanese characters. I created the various compositions using abstract shapes and overlapping halftones.

Coffee Belt Collection

Located between the Tropics of Capricorn and Cancer, horizontally along the equator, is a strip of land known as The Coffee Belt. The necessities for growing coffee plants are a rich soil, mild temperatures, lots of rain, a dry season, and shaded sun. This is what makes places like close to the equator ideal for growing coffee. For this collection I aimed to highlight these unique geographic regions of tropical climates and rich environments, full of lush vegetation and optimal growing soil as well as the flavor characteristics of coffees from the three main growing regions. This collection aimed to educate customers, please coffee fanatics, and inspire the search for the world’s best coffees.

Burlap Coffee Sack

Before Starbucks Reserve Roasteries roast small-batch coffees, the beans are first shipped in from all over the world in unique bags from their origin. These beautiful burlap bags are covered in designs using stamps and stencils that are spray painted at those coffee regions. These bags serve as a rich backdrop in the setting of our Roasteries. Some of these coffees are removed from their origin bags, blended together, and in those cases, we needed a new bag to put them in. For this design I took inspiration from the imperfections of the origin bags, to create a unique stamp that can sit comfortably among the others. Several years later we started up-cycling this burlap bag into other merchandise after use as a sustainable way to celebrate the brand.