Waka Coffee & Tea
Packaging, Illustration, Pitch Deck, POS
Instant coffee & tea that actually tastes good.
Waka Coffee & Tea launched just before the pandemic, entering a highly competitive beverage market during an uncertain time for emerging consumer brands. Despite these challenges, Waka successfully established itself as a premium instant coffee and tea company known for delivering exceptional taste, convenience, and quality. Today, the brand continues to expand its product offerings, regularly introducing new flavors and formats while growing its national retail presence.
The Challenge
After completing the SKU Accelerator program, Waka entered a critical growth phase. While the brand had an established identity, it needed a scalable packaging system capable of supporting new product launches, additional sizes, retail expansion, and increased consumer recognition. As the product portfolio grew, maintaining brand consistency while differentiating flavors and formats became increasingly important.
My Approach
Since 2021, I have served as Waka's lead packaging designer, evolving the brand's visual language across a growing range of products. I developed packaging solutions for new flavors, product formats, and size variations while introducing a custom illustration system that strengthened shelf presence and enhanced product storytelling. Beyond packaging, I also designed the company's investor pitch deck, helping communicate the brand's vision, growth strategy, and market opportunity to potential investors.
The Results
Waka Coffee & Tea has continued its impressive growth trajectory, securing more than $1 million in funding to support expansion efforts. The brand earned Walmart's prestigious Golden Ticket and is now available in more than 600 retail locations nationwide, including Walmart, Target, Dick's Sporting Goods, HomeGoods, and L.L.Bean. As a long-term design partner, I continue to support Waka's growth through packaging development, brand consistency, and strategic visual communication.
