Rustikao Chocolate

Created by Dainin Solis

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Crafting a new brand to support young chocolatiers in rural Nicaragua.

MADE IN FAMILY, MADE IN COMMUNITY

In the remote, mountainous, and fertile lands of Jinotega in northern Nicaragua, hundreds of micro and small producers seek to reduce their economic dependence on coffee by cultivating cacao. Their children transform the best beans into artisan chocolate. The final result has deep-noted flavors, rustic features, and a lot of character.

The Rustikao Chocolate Factory was born to complement the Proyecto de Diversificación con Cacao (check the brand project) promoted by the Soppexca cooperative. It allows children of the producers to integrate into the economy of their community by starting a local business: from harvest and processing to packaging and sales of products.

Initially known as Chocolatería Quetzalcoatl, the brand had not achieved relevant recognition despite being in the market for several years. Partly because of its difficult-to-pronounce name, hard-to-open packaging, unappealing design, and lack of communication of their social impact and story.

Challenge

They needed to improve the perceived value of the product to help increase sales and re-launch themselves as a new offering in the local artisan chocolate market.

Working closely with the chocolate factory team, we formulated a strategy and defined the foundation for a new brand. We created a name that was easier to pronounce and designed not only a logo but an entirely new brand visual language and packaging design system that adequately reflects the artisanal and natural character of the product, improving its perceived value.

Developing the strategy

During the discovery stage, we visited the cacao plantations and the chocolate factory to learn first-hand about the history, the processes, and the people behind the product We facilitated a brand discovery workshop with the young chocolatiers and the Soppexcca management team to get a clear understanding of the core of the business, its challenges, and opportunities

We helped them identify and analyze their target audience, understand their needs, and build profiles for them. Finally, together, we defined the objectives, priorities, and central actions of the brand.

Later we audited the management and brand identity to date and visited the stores of the main competitors to get an impression of the shopping experience. Finally, we investigated and analyzed their online communication and behavior.

A name of origin

Although the former name "Quetzalcoatl" was related to the history of cocoa, it was hard to pronounce, complicated to write, and as a result, difficult to remember.

We created a new name: Rustikao. It is simple and different, and most importantly, it would help the brand to communicate its rural origin while making a direct reference to the natural and handmade qualities of the product.

A brand with artisanal appeal

The main goal of the brand renewal was to improve the perceived value of the product by having the visual identity adequately convey the brand attributes. We were looking to achieve a sweet balance between an artisan appeal with a modern hint.​​​​​​​ ​​​

​​​​​​​We provided the brand with a robust visual language that goes beyond the logo, creating a scalable system with several graphic resources, sprinkling flavor, and personality to the brand.

The identity system ranges from a selection of assets and materials with natural finishes, such as kraft paper, a typography pallet with rustic characteristics, the use of worn and irregular details, and an enriched color palette.

We also designed auxiliary graphics such as stamps, alternative logos, and two custom patterns to be dynamically and flexibly implemented on the packaging, stationery, and other touchpoints.