Café Martínez

It's always time for a good coffee!!

Café Martínez is a gastronomy and retail brand with hundreds of locations across Argentina and several other countries. Over two years at the agency, I grew from Creative Designer to Art Director, working across multiple accounts, with Café Martínez as one of the most significant and long-running.

Everything started with a single idea: "We add color to the coffee." A concept that became the brand's creative platform, shaping campaigns, products, and new business initiatives over time. The work on this platform contributed to a Bronze Effie Award in the retail category.

One of the first major initiatives under this platform was the International Barista Championship, a competition I co-created with the Creative Director, developing the concept, naming, brand identity, and full competition strategy. The mechanic was built to engage every employee across all locations. Participants submitted their latte art on social media, and the photos with the most likes earned a spot in the selection round. From there, ten finalists were interviewed and competed in a live MasterChef-style format, showcasing their technique and creativity in front of a judging panel. The top three then created an original coffee recipe, and the winner received the ultimate prize: a trip to Colombia along the coffee route, visiting the farms, learning the cultivation process, and experiencing the origin of the bean firsthand. The championship continues to run today across Argentina and every country where the brand operates, and remains one of the most distinctive culture initiatives the brand has built.

To launch the concept, we developed a storytelling film built entirely from illustration and motion design. I co-developed the concept and narrative with the creative team, wrote the storyboard alongside the copywriter, and art directed the visual language that was handed off to the animation studio for production.

Capsules compatible with you

When Café Martínez launched its line of home-compatible coffee capsules, the challenge was emotional as much as commercial: how do you bring the café experience into someone's kitchen?

The campaign "Capsules Compatible With You" connected each coffee variety to its place of origin, Brazil, Colombia, Tipo Italiano, pairing the product with the landscapes and cultures behind the bean. The idea ran across digital, OOH, and in-store, turning a product launch into a sensory journey.

Membership card benefits

As the concept matured, the brand took the next step: building a loyalty ecosystem for its customers. I was part of the core team that developed the full project, from naming and brand identity to the points strategy, membership tiers, and initial app design.

The result was Club Martínez: a benefits program with three levels (Green, Gold, and Black) where every purchase earns points and unlocks better rewards. The system was designed to feel like a natural extension of the brand, colorful, warm, and built around the idea that every coffee moment deserves to be celebrated. The identity created for the program remains in use today.