Client Spotlight: Bears Bakery & Cafe

One of Sooke longstanding bakery cafes, Little Vienna Bakery, was acquired by new owners this year, and they were keen to change the vibe in a more… cottage core direction. They had picked Bears Bakery & Cafe for the new name, and who better to help with a little bear-focused makeover than the Almostronauts? See also Client Spotlight: Ackinclose & Son (aka YYJ Plumbers)

We started with the logo, based on the client’s sketch, and a colour palette, and then it was go time for product labels, stickers, loyalty cards, the new website, and so on.

For the logo, we wanted hand-drawn typography, and a few different variants using a leaf, based on a sketch provided by the client.

About the art style

The timeline was short, so we didn’t have time to develop a comprehensive “character bible”. We started with one bear and the ball kept rolling from there, with more and more drawings added of bears enjoying various treats, ranging from coffee to soup…

Jeff: “Because of the short timeline, simplicity was key to creating multiple designs without becoming bogged down in details. To help, the bears were modeled after animation in which body parts such as arms, legs, eyes, and accessories were separate elements. This meant that when a new design was requested, they could be “animated” into position and then refined into the final design. This helped speed up the turnaround while still remaining flexible enough to push the design if requested.”

Marleen: “The bakery needed a lot of items very quickly – including a design for to-go cups, which came out so cute, and various product labels.”

Devyn: “Making the bits and bobs that would be art for the website ended up being so much more fun and interesting than one would guess considering the simple art style and limited palette given to work with. We decided to go with a more handmade and unique feel for the hero section by creating a layered paper style. I treated the piece as if it were a virtual diorama, separating pieces of the bear as if I were cutting the pieces of paper, then creating drop shadows to give it that floaty, papery feel. It probably sounds way more complicated than it actually is, but such a simple thing came to look really special and give our bear just a little more depth and identity.”

Why we love working with Bears Bakery & Cafe

The owners are open to suggestions on how to sprinkle a little bit of extra fun on top – for example, these cute custom colouring sheets which Devyn created in time for the grand opening, or adding bumblebees to the website. We are also working on fun t-shirt designs, and not even we know what’s next – so keep your eyes peeled!

No AI was used to create any of these assets.

If your brand needs a whimsical makeover, let us know! (It doesn’t have to be bears… we love all animals ;))