We first met Charles Carpenter and Hollie Schmiedeskamp from Tekwani Design Co at SCA Expo in Houston. What started as a brief conversation about design quickly revealed the depth of their coffee industry expertise particularly about the design of coffee packaging. We followed up with a deeper interview to dive into how packaging can make or break a coffee business.
During that conversation, Charles shared a story that perfectly illustrates the power of strategic design: A Denver coffee roaster approached Tekwani with a problem—one of their special blends sat untouched on the shelf while customers walked past to buy other coffees. They worked together to completely revamp the packaging - but nothing changed about the beans inside.
Three months after the redesign, they faced a different problem: they couldn't keep it in stock. "When it had the old label, it just sat on the shelf," explains Charles. "When it got this new package, it flew off the shelves and they couldn't stock it. They kept running out of it and it was like the exact same coffee."
Coffee packaging design can make or break your roasting business. The right design doesn't just look good—it drives sales, streamlines operations, and positions your brand. Here's what coffee roasters need to know about creating coffee bag designs that work as hard as you do.
The Denver roaster's transformation illustrates a fundamental truth: packaging design directly impacts sales. With customers making purchase decisions within seven seconds and 72% of consumers saying packaging influences their buying decisions, your bags are doing more work than you realize.
When we first met Charles, he shared a principle that guides all of Tekwani's work: "Good design solves problems." When done right, specialty coffee packaging creates measurable results across three key areas:
Sales Transformation – When you've tried everything in the promotional playbook and sales remain flat, redesigning your packaging might be the answer. The Denver roaster's experience isn't unique—many roasters see significant sales increases from the exact same product with new custom coffee bags.
Brand Storytelling – Your packaging extends your brand identity. "Some roasters want to be a really cool third space, and their coffee packaging needs to be an extension of that," Charles explains. "It should be a little souvenir you can take home and remind you of this place that you love to hang out at."
Channel Expansion – Moving from in-store to retail coffee packaging requires more than production capacity. Your bags need roast dates, net weights, barcodes, and proper compliance to meet retail requirements.
Coffee Packaging Mistakes That Hurt Sales
Bad packaging doesn't just fail to help—it actively hurts your coffee roasting business. And "bad" doesn't always mean ugly; it means misaligned with your operational and financial realities.
Production nightmares – Minor design choices create major headaches. Bags with finishes that coffee bag labels won't stick to, excessive stickers, or complicated assembly processes might look great but cost you time and efficiency.
Market confusion – Premium coffee in budget packaging confuses customers and reduces perceived value. As Charles notes: "People are making a snap judgment. They're judging the value of the coffee not by tasting it, but by the way it looks."
Cash flow constraints – Beautiful custom bags designed for specific single origins or pricey packaging can create financial constraints. "We saw an example at Expo where the packaging was beautiful," Hollie recalls. "But the roaster had custom-designed bags for each single lot coffee. When the coffee ran out, they were stuck with inventory and had to start the design process over."
The question isn't whether to prioritize sales or brand positioning—with the right designer, both are achievable. The key is finding a partner who balances creative vision with operational reality.
Before evaluating designers or diving into creative concepts, successful packaging projects start with internal clarity. "Before we ever head into design, what is the goal?" Hollie asks new clients.
Every coffee roaster wants stunning product packaging. But balancing design ambitions with the financial and operational realities of running a profitable coffee roasting business is essential.
Your roastery size significantly impacts your coffee packaging design approach, and misalignment creates costly problems.
Small or New Roasters: Charles strongly recommends universal designs over individual custom coffee bags. "If a roaster is just starting out, we always try to steer clear of going all in on a custom bag," he explains. "Or, if they are able to invest in a custom bag, that the bag design is universal enough to be used with a labeling system." This flexible approach avoids the financial and operational constraints of single-use custom designs.
Established Operations: Larger roasters can justify premium specialty coffee packaging that supports their positioning. Charles points to a client selling $30+ coffees: "But if that coffee is in a kraft bag with a messy label and maybe a nice logo, you'll have a hard time moving that product. The conflicting price point and design creates a disconnect."
The Denver roaster's sleeve-based system exemplifies smart scaling—"It was a sleeve-based system with a different card that shifts into the die-cut sleeves. This provided lots of flexibility for his coffee lineup" while supporting brand consistency and operational efficiency.
Production Process: "How are you fulfilling your orders? Where are your orders going? What are the logistical needs?" Hollie probes. These factors significantly impact viable design options.
Budget Reality: "How much flexibility does your labeling system need? Do you have a budget for fully custom? Is that even appropriate for you?" Hollie asks. Premium packaging can be worth the investment, but only if it aligns with your business model.
Timeline and Volume: Consider your typical production volume, equipment limitations, and growth projections. A flexible system that can scale with your business often makes more sense than a beautiful design that creates operational bottlenecks.
The design skills required for consumer packaged goods differ from digital design work. Not all designers understand the unique operational challenges of specialty coffee packaging. Coffee bag design involves complexities that don't exist in other categories, and these nuances can make or break both your production process and sales success.
"Making sure that they have coffee experience of at least one project, at least," Hollie recommends. Designers must understand everything from product labeling requirements and one-way valve placement to creating designs that capture attention both online and in-store.
Regulatory Requirements: "It literally has to say roasted coffee, as if you didn't know that's what was in the bag," Hollie notes about FDA requirements. Coffee bags entering retail must include roast dates, net weights, and proper one-way valve placement - all things that need consideration in the design.
Operational Realities: Design choices directly impact production efficiency and costs. Experienced coffee packaging designers know how label placement affects filling equipment, which bag finishes work with different adhesives, and how valve positioning impacts packaging lines.
Premium Positioning Needs: Understanding how to communicate the story and complexity of single origins through design, especially when justifying premium price points.
Listening Skills: Charles emphasizes one extremely important characteristic: "Will they listen to you?"
"One piece of great feedback we often receive is, 'You are great listeners,'" says Charles. "There's a reason everybody's in coffee, and we really want to hear that." A designer's ability to listen to your needs versus assuming they know what you need will greatly impact the project's success.
Design Philosophy: Look beyond surface aesthetics in a designer's portfolio. Do they specialize in a particular style that resonates with you? Does their portfolio suggest they can accomplish a wide range of styles? A portfolio offers a glimpse into their capabilities.
Discovery Process: The best designers invest significant time in understanding your business. When meeting new clients, Tekwani Design Co first asks them to complete a thorough questionnaire. "We start with that questionnaire, and then we meet with our clients to really ask 'are we hearing you correctly?'" Look for designers who seek to understand your needs before jumping into design work.
The team at Tekwani Design Co works with everyone in the coffee industry, from producers and farmers to importers, roasters, and coffee shop owners. Inspired by his family's roots in El Salvador, Charles brought his team to El Salvador to truly understand and experience the journey coffee takes from seed to cup. This hands-on experience influences how they honor each producer, farmer, importer, or roaster's story through their design.
Hollie mentions that each project should start with a defined goal. "Before we ever head into design, we need to discuss what the goal is," she says. "Knowing all of their goals upfront is key so we can be efficient with rounds of revision and the entire design process."
To refine your design project's goal, ask yourself:
Starting with a defined and agreed upon goal keeps everyone on track throughout the project.
Through years of coffee-focused design work, industry experts consistently see these expensive pitfalls:
This one should go without saying! Have multiple people proofread your new bag designs to catch spelling mistakes before they go to print.
If you use a QR code on your packaging, double check the destination of the link. "We had a client give us a wrong QR code once… and we had to pivot and find a way to fix it because it had gone to print," Hollie admits. "I think it haunts all of us still." Always test digital elements before printing.
Coffee bags must adhere to various labeling requirements for reasons ranging from municipality specifications to certification guidelines and beyond. Make sure your bag checks all the necessary boxes before signing off on the final design.
"We once had to navigate a situation with a client because their existing labels wouldn't physically adhere to the specific finish they had chosen for their bag," explains Hollie. Design choices impact production systems! Sometimes a bag design neglects existing equipment and processes. Will the new bag work on your heat sealer? There are 4 extra labels, who will print them? How much extra time will it take to apply them? Do they look good after applied by hand or do you need fixtures/machines to do the work?
Wow - so many things to think through! Work with your designers to ensure that design decisions won't cause issues for your production team.
Your coffee packaging represents one of your most visible and lasting marketing investments. Unlike advertising that appears briefly, your bags sit on shelves, in customers' homes, and in social media posts for weeks or months. A coffee bag is often a customer's first interaction with your brand. Is your packaging sharing the story you want to tell?
The team at Tekwani Design Co can help you tackle all of your packaging design challenges, from crafting the perfect brand story to solving operational obstacles.
Good design solves problems rather than creating them. Whether you're launching your first blend or modernizing an established brand, the right packaging investment can transform your business—just ask that Denver roaster who can't keep their coffee in stock.
Ready to transform your coffee packaging? Reach out to Charles and Hollie and let them know RoasterTools sent you!
