Brush Past Coffee BoxPackaging design for Brush Past CIC
Overview
Brush Past is a community interest company that uses coffee to fund creative workshops for people experiencing homelessness, addiction and other struggles. I designed the packaging for its coffee box, a revenue stream built to turn every purchase into support for the people and artists behind it.
The brief
Brush Past was founded by Jeremy Knight, one of Hej Coffee’s founders, who wanted to start a new project supporting people on the margins, and David Downes. Beyond the core concept, I was given a lot of creative freedom, and I worked with fellow designer Ana Rodrigues as we built the brand from scratch. Ana focused on the website, and I led the design of the box.
The idea
The name comes from the act of brushing past someone without giving them the attention they deserve, something many people who beg on the street experience every day. The box is meant to do the opposite and make people stop and look. Sales fund workshops in homeless shelters and community centres, where participants build skills, make work and move towards a more dignified life.
Earlier alternative versions featured the brand’s ‘chevron’ as the window instead of the question-mark.
The design
Inside each box is a plain black coffee bag, and a collectible artwork card. The card is visible from outside through a question-mark window cut into the front, a decision from Jeremy, who wanted some of the design to stay hidden and make people ask “what’s inside?”. Each card features work by an artist from the workshops, and sales of a box with a particular design support the artist who made it. Because every card is different, they work as collectibles that encourage people to come back and complete the set.
On the outside, the front is deliberately quiet: white, with a bold “Speciality coffee roasted in Peckham” and the line “Every cup shares a story.” A yellow roundel marks whole beans or ground coffee depending on the contents. The back tells the Brush Past story and carries the practical information:
A short “About Brush Past” introduction, a QR code and the Social Impact Coffee co-branding.
A band with details of the coffee, including origins, process, roast, taste notes and brew methods.
A tick-box for whole beans or ground, and a carbon label.
The outcome
The box is on sale now through the Brush Past website, and workshops are being run in the community. I worked with the artists to create 10 card designs. Brush Past is still in its early days, with co-founders Jeremy and David building the groundwork. Beyond the design, I volunteered my time to run two t-shirt-making workshops, in Brixton and Westminster, which gave me a first-hand look at the work the packaging exists to support.
