M&S came to us with a new specialty coffee house blend for its Cafés and Foodhalls. We needed to give the brand serious coffee credentials and create something with artisanal appeal, standout and staying power – while sitting comfortably alongside the established premium Collection range.
Finding the sweet spot
We explored what coffee lovers value in speciality coffee and how M&S could deliver those artisanal credentials without making them feel exclusive. The opportunity was clear: make better coffee accessible to everyone while staying true to the quality and trust of M&S.
Waking Britain up to better cups
We defined Roast & Ritual’s purpose: to wake Britain up to better cups by democratising speciality coffee for all. This became the foundation for a clean, modern identity designed to balance craft, quality and everyday accessibility.
Making the story consistent
We explored how the M&S tone of voice could flex for ‘speciality coffee for all’, then brought everything together in comprehensive guidelines covering logo usage, design, packaging, voice and messaging.
Meet Roast & Ritual
We created Roast & Ritual – a standalone name that feels modern and artisanal, but warm and approachable. A clean, contemporary logo was paired with the quietly confident ‘For real coffee lovers’ strapline, while a ‘Crafted by M&S Food’ lock-up connected it clearly to the M&S family.
Craft in every detail
A distinctive duck egg blue palette and swirling pattern inspired by latte art gave the brand its own recognisable look. We carried this across coffee cups, reusable cups and packaging designed to showcase the quality of the coffee and dial up M&S’s speciality coffee credentials.
For real coffee lovers, everywhere
Our photography told a story of deliciousness, versatility and accessibility, from coffee enjoyed in an M&S Café to cups brewed at home. A confident, down-to-earth tone of voice with carefully placed moments of wit carried the personality through print and digital POS and launch merchandise.
Roast & Ritual proved specialty coffee doesn’t have to be serious or intimidating. The new house blend boosted engagement across M&S Cafés, bringing together artisanal quality with the familiarity people already know and trust from M&S. Beans, ground coffee and pods took the experience beyond the Café and into people’s homes, helping the brand reach new audiences along the way. Modern, accessible and made for real coffee lovers – specialty coffee, the M&S way.
Roast & Ritual
Brewing M&S’s new specialty coffee brand
Sophie Miller
Brand & Marketing Manager
"Whippet helped us create something very special with Roast & Ritual. They took our vision for a specialty coffee brand and turned it into something truly standout – artisanal yet approachable, and perfectly aligned with the M&S identity. It's a hit with our customers and a real boost to our coffee offering."