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Girls Who Grind

AND A BOY WHO DESIGNS

D o you know in every cup of inally worked in animation and art direction

before becoming an illustrator full-time in
coffee that we drink, more than
half of the contributions are
with a tidy, graphic approach, which has been
from women? According to 2005. Ben has a very clean and colorful style
the Gender Equality in the Coffee Sector by liked by clients from different countries and
the International Coffee Organization, al- different industries.
most 70% of labor in coffee production is Even though Ben has plenty of expe-
provided by women. Even so, the gender gap rience doing design for different people, this
in the coffee industry is still huge. The same is his first time to create branding for wom-
report also stated that women in the coffee en-owned roaster business. Ben admitted
sectors are usually only present in fieldwork, that he didn’t really experience the gender
harvest, and sorting, but we rarely see them inequality that many women in the coffee
in the roasting, coffee shop running, or busi- industry. Nevertheless, from helping his wife
ness operation side due to lack of resources, with Girls Who Grind Coffee face he started
information and support. to realize the gender gap.
To better amplify this brand message, He told us: “I hadn’t worked in the
co-founder and head of the brand Fi O’Brien’s coffee industry before Fi and Casey founded
husband Ben O’Brien stepped in and helped Girls Who Grind Coffee, so it’s a recent re-
create the whole brand image, from the brand alization for me, learning about the rights of
logo and business card to the product pack- women who farm coffee worldwide, but also
aging, holographic stickers and brand graph- opening your mind and learning how the
ic t-shirts. industry can be in local cafes in your own
Ben said: “The coffee industry has community. ”
always been male-dominated, from farms “As a man, it’s hard to relate to the
to modern cafes. We wanted our brand to experiences of women in any industry, I
look strong and cut through the ocean of haven’t personally faced those experiences,
roasters and coffee brands already out especially being a straight, white man, but I
there. We felt that the brand design carried am learning a lot about the experiences of
that perfectly.” others, and thinking a lot about my own
Ben O’Brien who works under the privileges, the lack of fairness worldwide,
name of Ben the Illustrator, has been in the especially this year with the Black Lives
creative industry for over 20 years. He orig- Matter movement.”

Photo / united-nations-covid-19-response
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