Café Collateral
Café collateral is the collection of small print pieces that live between menu and take-away. The stamp card redeemed after the tenth espresso. The postcard with the opening illustration that someone has on their fridge three years later. The bean label that carries the brand promise off the shelf. We design these pieces across Germany so they do not look like promotional material but like a part of the café that is allowed to leave with you.
What belongs in a café collateral set
At the core: stamp card or loyalty card, postcard for opening, season or birthday, flyer for events and specials, coffee bean label, optional gift card, sticker set, small giveaway with the take-away. We think the set from the service side: which cards end up in which drawer? Which format fits a wallet? Which motif holds up on a fridge for three years? We design not for the press image but for daily use.
Materially we recommend per piece: stamp cards on 300 g/m² natural card that absorbs stamp ink cleanly and does not crease in a wallet. Postcards on 350 g/m² natural paper, optionally with hot foil as an accent. Bean labels as self adhesive natural paper on the bag, with roast and best by date imprint. For coffee roasteries we build the label system so variety changes happen without a new design brief.
How the collateral sits in the brand system
Café collateral is the take-home continuation of the service experience. It belongs inside the same design system as food menu, take-away design and chalkboard, from the same type family and colour palette. If a café branding is being developed in parallel, we build the collateral as a third step after logo and menu, because the material only really works after the brand is consolidated. A typical set lands between €1,200 and €4,500, depending on number of pieces and material. We name the range honestly before the proposal.
Loyalty that actually gets used
A stamp card only works if it fits in a wallet and the service finds the stamp position in two seconds. We design format and layout from the service side.
Keepable, not throwaway
Postcards and limited cards are designed so guests keep them. Material, format and motif make the difference between a flyer and a piece worth taking.
Connected to the brand system
Stamp card, bean label and flyer belong in the same type family and colour palette as menu, cup and storefront. One brand, many applications.
Print data without returns
Bleed, safe areas, fold marks, ICC profile. We deliver print data that goes straight into production at the printer, not back for discussion.
Selected work
Leni's Café – Branding
A café brand like a handwritten note: watercolour menu, packaging and type for a small café.
Weingut Werner – Wine Labels
From vineyard to shelf — labels that translate the character and origin of a small winery into a visual language of its own.
TheSharp.Club – Packaging Design
Packaging as ritual: labels, box and banderole for a blade club that celebrates craft.
Frequently asked
A core set with stamp card, postcard, flyer for openings or events and a bean label typically lands between €1,200 and €4,500. With additional pieces like a gift card, sticker set or seasonal flyer it moves into the upper range.
From briefing to proof, 3 to 5 weeks is realistic. If the brand already exists and the content is final, it moves faster. If a [café branding](/en/branchen/gastronomie/cafe) is being developed in parallel, we plan the set as a shared print push with menu and cup.
For stamp cards 300 g/m² natural card or Colorplan, so the stamp prints cleanly and the card holds up in a wallet. For postcards 350 g/m² natural paper, ideally with hot foil as an accent. For bean labels a self adhesive natural paper on the bag.
Sometimes, often not. A physical card does not get lost in a phone backup and stays visible on the counter. Digital makes sense only with a meaningful regulars base and app affinity. We discuss that openly.
Yes. Cafés, bakeries and roasteries in every region of Germany are part of the normal project landscape. Briefings and layout rounds run entirely remote. Finished pieces ship directly from the printer.
Start a project?
Tell me briefly what it is about — in a 30-minute first conversation we clarify whether and how we can work together.