The Art of Coffee Bean Packaging

 

The Art of Coffee Bean Packaging: A Few Things You Should Know

Coffee is the heart of Starbucks

Over more than half a century, Starbucks has introduced countless coffee beans, which have become a common topic of enthusiastic discussion among partners and between partners and customers.

Extending from "coffee," there are actually many lesser-known but very interesting "peripherals," such as coffee bean stamps, coffee bean cards, and coffee bean "grade" classifications.

There is one "peripheral" that seems relatively niche, yet it is a very important and closely related existence to coffee beans—coffee bean packaging. In this article, let's take a look at the evolution of coffee bean packaging.

This year's Christmas blend coffee bean series caught my eye with its packaging design inspired by the reflection of mirror decorations. From a distance, it sparkles like snowflakes before and after Christmas, resembling the exclusive coffee beans that appear during the holiday season.

"Mirror design" is indeed rare in Starbucks coffee bean packaging. In my opinion, this design gives a sense of luxury and would be very suitable as a holiday gift for friends.

What exactly is the history of Starbucks coffee bean packaging? How can it be divided into stages?

 

01

1971-1987

In 1971, Starbucks opened its first global store in Pike Place Market in Seattle, USA. The shelves were filled with high-quality, freshly roasted Arabica coffee beans from around the world, as well as loose tea and spices.

If customers wanted to buy coffee beans, baristas would scoop them out with a stainless steel spoon and place them into a brown wax paper bag, then stamp a black ink seal on the bag. However, this seal only served to identify what kind of coffee beans they were.

Frankly speaking, there was nothing particularly special about this bag.

Today, this retro coffee bean bag is still available at the Pike Place Market Starbucks store (although not identical), and the only coffee beans using the brown bag—Pike Place Roast—are not the same as the familiar Pike Place Roast coffee. You can read my article to understand the difference between the two.

02

1987-1995

In 1987, Howard acquired Starbucks, marking the company's transformation from a retailer of coffee beans, tea, and spices (as indicated by the old logo surrounding Siren) to an Italian-style café.

 

As a result, Starbucks shifted its focus to sharing the origin and significance of each coffee bean with every customer. Starbucks hoped to reform and upgrade its coffee bean packaging.

It was from that time that coffee bean packaging was given a new mission—to tell stories.

The first innovation was the introduction of the coffee stamp, which Starbucks used to adorn traditional brown paper bags. These small stamps contained rich information: a majestic tiger represented Sumatra, while the Yukon Blend was symbolized by a fishing boat...

In 1989, Starbucks employed flavor lock technology in its coffee bean packaging. This small device allowed the carbon dioxide produced by the roasted coffee beans inside the packaging to escape while preventing oxygen from entering, thus preserving the freshness of the coffee beans to the greatest extent and facilitating long-distance transportation.

03
1995~Now

 

On March 30, 1995, Starbucks officially began selling its own brand of CDs in-store, primarily consisting of jazz and classical instrumental music—Blue Note Blend (not referring to coffee beans here). Howard detailed this intriguing story in a chapter of his book "Pour Your Heart Into It." Interested partners might want to check it out.

In conjunction with this epoch-making move, the Blue Note Blend Coffee was also officially launched, which revolutionized the "rules of the game" for Starbucks coffee bean packaging.

Compared to the previous "amateur" coffee bean packaging designs, this was the first design to use full-color pattern printing on coffee bean bags.

The full-color design was not just about attracting attention; more importantly, it provided an endless canvas of imagination for partners and customers alike. Each coffee bean variety has its unique story, and the coffee bag packaging served as a canvas before us, inviting discussion, sharing, and spreading among everyone.

 

Conclusion

The history of coffee bean packaging is not complicated, but the design of each historical phase's coffee bean packaging has its symbolism and interpretation. It also involves a wealth of knowledge about coffee beans. Therefore, while learning about coffee beans, we should also understand the packaging and design stories of coffee beans. Only then can we share with partners and customers with more confidence.