jayanta jenkins

Starbucks

Here's to Joy & Coffee

A holiday campaign that turned coffee into connection.

Starbucks’ holiday cups are iconic. They signal that the season has arrived, and for a lot of people, they’re tied to real memories and traditions. But 2024 brought real headwinds: poor brand sentiment, a divisive election cycle, and an urgent need to create moments of togetherness. The moments that stick are usually the simple ones. A coffee run with a friend. A quiet morning before the chaos starts. Starbucks has always been part of those moments, and we wanted to lean into that.

So we built ‘Merrier Together’ as a strategic platform that unified 80+ markets under one creative vision. Then, mid-campaign, our new CEO wanted something even more direct. We pivoted to ‘Here’s to Joy & Coffee’ in weeks, not months. Because we’d built such a strong foundation, the team adapted quickly. The strategy held. Only the tagline changed.

With Academy Award-nominated director Henry Alex Rubin, we captured the warmth of everyday holiday moments. The cups got a refresh with rich jade green, cranberry red, and siren-inspired details. We built out a full design system that carried through in-store, on digital, and across TV and social. All of it invited people to make their Starbucks rituals feel a little more personal.

In the hardest year to bring people together, we did. 42% lift in year-over-year store visits and sales. Social sentiment shifted from transactional to emotional. Customers made our cups part of their stories from Seattle to Shanghai.

Siren Chorus is a celebration of vibrant, striped holiday charms, coming together in a beautiful chorus of colors. Drawing inspiration from the intricate patterns formed by raking coffee beans under the sun and the , flowing lines of the Starbucks siren, this design creates a playful yet elegant visual experience.

The Joyful Connection cup, with its circular patterns, honors the artistry of coffee roasting, symbolizing warmth and joy. The design beautifully captures the essence of connection and the communal experience that coffee fosters.

With Warm Wishes, Starbucks designers started with the idea of a view of coffee cups from above coming together and saying “cheers” to each other. Interconnected dots evoke glowing holiday lights and moments of enjoying coffee together.

Lyrical Landscape features vibrant, undulating lines that weave together, reminiscent of holiday ribbons and the green rolling hills where coffee is grown. Alternating bands of red, green and pink create a symphony of color like a perfectly wrapped gift.