Caste Projects’ ongoing branding work for Habit Coffee flies in the face of traditional brand consistency. In lieu of rigidly enforced graphic standards— even the Habit logo appears in many different forms—Caste employ a playful varied, hand-rendered approach to create a rich brand personality. To be fair, this is hardly the first identity to challenge the conventions of branding in this way, but it is a great example of how to do it well; each new postcard, t-shirt or advertisement, yielding genuine surprise and delight. One of my personal favorites is this series of customer loyalty stamp cards featuring a whimsical range of illustrations, which at first glance have little or no connection with coffee. Instead, the subject matter alludes to a larger culture that celebrates local experience (bicycles, BC ferries), the environment (the indigenous giant octopus) and values old-fashioned skill and craftsmanship (yo-yo tricks, fishing flies).