This project had me explore the potential rebranding of the coffee shops around NC State, giving us a chance to understand how each shop serves a specific student audience, and how to make sure their identities reflect those students.
Researching the Cafe
I focused on the Port City Java in Park Shops, a uniquely modern multi-departmental building in the heart of NC State University's North Campus.Â
By putting out some surveys on tables, I learned this location had easily the most diverse student user population of all campus cafes - essentially a melting pot of different majors, backgrounds, and tastes!
Finding an Identity
To represent the immense variety of students that come through the cafe every day, I ended up centering the brand around the location's centrality to North Campus - imagining it as a cultural grounds or exchange.
I also wanted to include the motif of a steel beam, to pay homage to the building's unique architectural style.
After bouncing around some feedback on looks & attitude, the identity evolved from initial designs with a more rugged aesthetic to a friendlier, more modern approach, landing on the name "Up North Grounds."
