Dark Horse Coffee Roasters: Packaging Case Study

Starting as a family business in 2012, Dark Horse Coffee leveraged its exceptional product & stellar service to acquire the famous spots in California, along with three other locations in San Diego and one in Truckee.

They’ve since launched a subscription club, through which their consumers can sign up and have bags of house-roasted beans delivered weekly or monthly.

Their mission was to enrich their community in Southern California as well as the lives of numerous farmers, families, and small producers in coffee-growing countries across the globe.

The Challenge

For Dark Horse Coffee’s subscription service to be viable and striking for new & current consumers, the unboxing experience had to be carefully planned and executed perfectly.

They needed packaging for both their coffee pouch and their shipping box. One that could demonstrate the brand perfectly while maintaining a cost-effective budget. They also needed an expert to guide them through every step of the way, from concept to completion. PakFactory is the place to get custom packaging done!

photo: pakfactory

Russel and the team at PakFactory made it super easy and feasible for us to get from concept to final product in our hands

Bryan Charlson, Co-Founder

The Solution

Since Dark Horse Coffee was looking for an agency type service and specific options for their packaging, they decided that going for PakFactory’s freedom paperboard & corrugated service was ideal!

By working with PakFactory, they were able to utilize the expertise of the team entirely. The packaging artwork designed by Daniel & Bryan Charlson and the options provided by PakFactory finalized the required specifications.

The shipping box was produced with Corrugated Tab Lock Mailer Box and Flood Full Color Print (Digital). The retail box was with Tuck End Snap Lock Bottom and Matte LaminateGold (Hot) Foil Stamping for the logo & texts, and spot UV coating for label border and small texts (Offset). And since the retail box required more details and elements to create the luxurious experience for their product, Offset lithographic printing was used to put all the unique elements onto the box.

photo: pakfactory

Customers have been loving the new look and we are already working on our 4th project with PakFactory!

Bryan Charlson, Co-Founder

The Results

Based on the client’s specifications and objective, PakFactory was able to put together the best possible options based on the scope of their project. By deciding to use digital print for their shipping box, Dark Horse Coffee was able to cut down on both production and shipping costs.

All in all, based on the options available for their designs and the dedicated support they received, Dark Horse Coffee was able to produce their packaging hassle-free and with confidence.

photo: pakfactory

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