Case Study
The Purpose
Undergrounds Coffee is found in the basement of a church just north of Los Angeles in the suburbs. The interior of the location is nothing short of exceptional. Their hip, contemporary lounge offers plenty of seating, couches, and tables for laptop users. Even their espresso comes from the likes of Intelligentsia, a God among coffee connoisseurs. What makes them different from traditional coffee shop chains is the fact that they are a non-profit and run off a "pay what you want" model. A percentage of the proceeds go to a charity that rotates every month.
The one aspect Undergrounds severely lacked was a strong web presence. Being one of our favorite locations to drink espresso and work, we were delighted at the opportunity of producing a beautiful website that compliments their artistic interior.
The Process and End Result
From the start, we knew we wanted Undergrounds' website to showcase a lot of photography of their location, the process of making coffee, and capture their community-driven moments they hold from time to time. With our trusting Canon camera, we ventured out to spend a day capturing shots of their lounge and of the staff making their delicious coffee drinks. Each photo needed to demonstrate the attention to detail in their process and to the aesthetics of the coffee shop itself.
One of our goals for the overall design was to leave plenty of breathing room for the content and to only provide the most important information for Undergrounds' current and new visitors. The homepage's rotating banner demonstrates three key components of their business: coffee, community, and culture. Although not explicitly noted on each slide, the idea and concept is carried out in a subtle manner to reinforce their ideals.
The result is a slick and fresh website that can compliment who they are and their sense of style and direction.