Ground Floor

Branding & visual identity · Solo designer

Ground Floor is a proposed rebrand for a university coffee shop. The goal was to move away from a generic, corporate feel and create a more welcoming identity that could connect with students, university staff, and the surrounding community.

Client:
Contest submission, 2026
Proposal, not selected
Work Done:
  • Logo and visual identity
  • Turtle mascot
  • Typography and color palette
  • Brand guidelines
  • Menu and poster examples
  • Cup mockup

  1. 001The Brief

    Ground Floor needed a brand that felt more inviting and relevant to the people who used the coffee shop. The existing identity felt corporate and lacked personality. The challenge was to create stronger character that could appeal to students, staff, and the off-campus community.

  2. 002The Thinking

    I wanted the identity to feel approachable and full of personality without losing consistency. The required turtle mascot became its foundation. Rather than a single logo character, I explored individual turtle icons that bring energy and variety while still feeling like one family.

  3. 003The Making

    I developed the logo and visual identity, including the typography, color palette, and turtle character system. I brought it together in a brand guideline sheet, then applied it to a cup mockup, a menu, and a poster to show how the identity could work across touchpoints.

  4. 004The Result

    The submission presented a cohesive identity built around a distinctive turtle mascot and a more playful, welcoming direction, with guidelines and applications showing how it could reach the everyday coffee shop experience. The proposal was not selected, but it let me take a complete brand from first direction to applications.

001 — The Brief

  • Explored turtle illustrations and logo sketches to give the coffee shop a more distinctive personality.
  • Reworked the existing identity to feel more inviting to students, staff, and the surrounding community.

002 — The Thinking

  • Developed a recognizable turtle mark that connects the brand to its coffee shop identity.
  • Explored variations of the character to create a family of icons with individual personalities.

003 — The Making

  • Built a cohesive identity system with a navy-led palette, complementary colors, and contrasting patterns.
  • Paired expressive branding with a considered typography system to balance personality and readability.

004 — The Result

  • Applied the identity to everyday touchpoints, including takeaway cups and printed menus.
  • Carried the visual system into practical materials to make the rebrand feel consistent beyond the logo.