Page 18 - CTI84_EN

C

A team of nameless a dual implication of “shaking off doziness with coffee” and
“staying clear-headed despite the surrounding environment,
DOE comes from the English phrase “John Doe/Jane refusing to take shortcuts and keeping independent thought
Doe”, a reference to “someone” or “no name” since the as well as clear self-awareness.”
mid-18th century. When it goes to the modern idiom, the
phrase has an extensive meaning of “Bro”, “Homie” and A life space for urban youth
“Friend”, representing an intimate friendship similar to
brother- and sister-hood. For its Chinese name card, Upon DOE’s inception, many passers-by felt un-
Terry and Himm choose “餖”, pronounced as “Doe” and familiar and curious about the store. Back then, Shang-
meaning “eat beans” – drinking coffee in this case. As a hai youth started to step into the street fashion circle
cozy cafe, DOE has an additional nature: lifestyle. “As in tow, gradually growing a need of sneakers and street
coffee is a part of lifestyle, we choose to show coffee as fashion items. By coincidence, specialty coffee took the
the major signboard in the 3 stores.” said Himm, “We are same development path. Today, after a few years, street
a team of nameless, and that’s why we name the brand fashion, sneakers and coffee have ridden the tide of
after DOE. The Chinese name 餖 originates from a type globalization to be a common lifestyle for the genera-
of mixed grains for ceremony. It echoes with how we tion. Seemingly irrelevant yet mutually integrated,
position our stores.” these symbols have mushroomed in Shanghai, Tokyo,
The common impression of DOE seems to go beyond Paris and other metropolises.
coffee. The displayed CDs, sneakers on the shelves and When the urban youth were cultivating their life-
dazzlingly fashionable clothes are eye-catching. Terry and style, DOE, on track of fashion, loomed to be a pioneer
Himm didn’t intend to add additional tags other than to develop a brand culture with its unique aesthetic.
“cafe” on DOE, and tried to distance themselves from the As of now, DOE has two of its pinpoints in Xin-
gimmick “a boutique in cafe”. “Though it is common to tiandi and Tongren Road in Shanghai, and a new store
integrate other stores into coffee, we insist on staying in Shengye UpperHills, Shenzhen, founded in 2019. All
clear-headed and operating one brand with 2 product of the 3 stores are located in shopping malls and near
categories. As for coffee, we keep our flavors and textures streets. Their design comes from Japanese architect
while never giving up homemade roast. We want to make Shuhei Aoyama, who takes cues from the brand culture
sure that professionals can focus on their own fields. to present relation between humans and nature, culture
While offering good products, we aim to present a good and life through the space. For example, all of the 3
cup of coffee for each and every customer.” stores use sliding doors and French windows, which
This is inline with DOE’s brand philosophy “BE FORM- are designed to break the boundary between indoors
LESS”, which is better than a state limited by form. Immersed and outdoors, bringing urban scenery to indoor cus-
in lifestyle, DOE encourages its customers to break the tomers while opening the store content to urban pass-
boundary of forms and create infinite possibilities in reali- ers-by. “Upon opening the door, we can hear the chat
ty. DOE COFFEE also has a slogan of “STAY WOKE”, with with city lanes,” they said.

DOE COFFEE also has a slogan of

“STAY WOKE”, with a dual implication

of “shaking off doziness with coffee”
and “staying clear-headed despite the

surrounding environment, refusing to

take shortcuts and keeping independent

thought as well as clear self-awareness” .

18 19