Project: D2C Seasonal In-Store Campaign
Industry: Retail
Audience: Convenience seekers, early risers, career professionals, students, families. Caribou Coffee

Context Caribou Coffee’s Northwoods holiday tradition holds deep emotional equity rooted in warmth, nostalgia, and seasonal ritual. Caribou partnered with us to evolve the in-store experience for a modern audience, balancing refreshed visual expression with preserved charm, familiarity, and the seasonal storytelling customers expect and recognize. Context • Balance heritage storytelling with refreshed visual expression.
• Preserve warmth, nostalgia, and Northwoods seasonal charm.
• Maintain strong in-store presence across key retail moments.
• Ensure adaptability across packaging, signage, and campaign touchpoints.
• Strengthen emotional connection to seasonal rituals and traditions. Criteria

Concept Devlopment Our “Santa Certified Gifts” concept brings Caribou’s day-making spirit to life through a playful, handcrafted holiday story rooted in warmth and imagination, blending ingredients, Northwoods charm, and small acts of good into an authentic festive experience. Creative Strategy

Identity
Devlopment We recommended illustration as the core visual approach for its handcrafted warmth that photography can’t match, unifying the campaign in a distinctive, cohesive style that signals the brand’s spirit. We partnered with Midwest illustrator Rick Peterson, whose cut-paper storytelling brings whimsy, nostalgia, and a uniquely Caribou seasonal feel. Illustration Style

This campaign required visual assets, including story vignettes bringing the “Santa Certified Gifts” narrative to life. We directed holiday patterns, border treatments, and banner art, creating a flexible graphic system that keeps the campaign festive, unified, and distinctly Caribou. Graphic Foundation

The copy, by Dan Rupert Kahn, adopts a whimsical, conversational storytelling voice that feels like modern holiday folklore—blending playful irreverence, poetic rhythm, and warm humor to create an intimate narrative that’s both imaginative and grounded in a distinctly human, observational perspective. Copy Tone

Engagement Applications With gifting as the focus of the campaign, each pack featured its own wrapping paper, offering audiences variety while enhancing the packaging’s festive appeal. Packaging

Hangtags and labels extend the illustrated system into tactile detail, reinforcing storytelling, product clarity, and festive charm across each packaged touchpoint. Hangtags & Labels

The full package system brings all wrapping, labels, and extras together into a unified look, showcasing a giftable world built for seasonal storytelling. The whole package

Applications extend the campaign into retail spaces through ceiling danglers, shelf talkers, and POP elements, creating an immersive in-store experience. Environmental Staging

The campaign balanced holiday tradition with fresh expression, strengthening emotional connection, enhancing the in-store experience, and elevating seasonal gifting.

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