For my senior capstone project, I wanted to combine my love for branding, packaging, and coffee, and ended up with Toast! My research question addressed what methods a small business can implement to combat the competition of larger brands and chains. I chose to do a cafe because it is a primary example of a type of local business that could both suffer or thrive under these circumstances depending not only on the quality of their products, but their brand recognition within their community. Toast provides a solution through recognizable, visually pleasing, and friendly branding that may sway a consumer’s decision on where to pick up their snack or cup of coffee for the day.
