Made in the Family, Made in the Community: In the remote mountainous and fertile lands of Jinotega in northern Nicaragua, hundreds of micro and small producers seek to reduce their dependence on coffee by cultivating cacao, their children transform the best beans into artisan chocolate, with rustic characteristics, deep notes, and a lot of character.

The Rustikao Chocolate Factory its an initiative promoted by the coffee cooperative Soppexca. Created to allow the children of their members to integrate into the economy of their community, starting a completely local business: from harvest to processing, packaging, and sales of products.

Initially known as Chocolatería Quetzalcoatl, the brand had not achieved relevant recognition despite having been in the market for some years. Partly because of its difficult to pronounce name, a hard to open packaging, its unappealing design, and the lack of communication of the social impact and story behind the product.

Challenge: They needed to improve the perceived value of the product to help increase sales and re-launch themselves as a new offering in the local artisan chocolate market.

Outcome: Working closely with the chocolate factory team, we formulated a strategy and defined the foundation for a new brand. We created a name that was easier to pronounce, going beyond to design just a logo and instead of developing an entirely new brand visual language and packaging design that adequately reflects the artisanal and natural character of the product, improving its perceived value.

An Awards-Winning Chocolate: Since its launch, Chocolate Rustikao has received positive feedback from both the client, the customers, and also the design community, being selected to participate in the Bienal Iberoamericana de Diseño 2020.

The product has been accolade with two bronze awards at the International Chocolate Awards for its dark and orange flavor. It also has participated with excellent acceptance in different international fairs in Europe, including the International Chocoa 2018 fair in Amsterdam.

Thanks to the awards, Jinotega was placed on the map of chocolate making. Rustikao proudly represents his community on the international stage.