Case Study: Sunrise Steam

Fictional Café Brand Concept

Project Snapshot

Project: Sunrise Steam — fictional café and coffee brand
Location: Long Island, NY (concept)
Tools: ChatGPT (AI), Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop

Overview

Sunrise Steam is an imaginary café brand created to test how A.I. could help shape a concept and identity for a local coffee shop. A.I. was used mainly for brainstorming and direction; all of the actual design work—logo, color, typography, and applications—was created by James in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

The aim was to build a brand that feels warm, bright, and welcoming, like a neighborhood spot people visit every morning on their way to work.

Concept Development

Using ChatGPT as a creative partner in the early phase, I explored:

• Different name ideas and landed on “Sunrise Steam”

• The overall vibe of the café — cozy, friendly, morning-focused

• Visual themes like sunrise, steam, and rich coffee tones

• Possible brand applications such as storefront signage, apparel, and cups

This helped quickly frame what Sunrise Steam should feel like before moving into design.

Design Execution

Once the direction was set, I moved into Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop to build out the identity and applications.

Logo and Identity System

• Created a primary logo featuring a steaming coffee cup in front of a rising sun, with SUNRISE as the main word and STEAM as a supporting line

• Developed alternate lockups: cup-only, sun-only, and wordmark variations for different uses

• Defined a warm, coffee-inspired color palette: deep coffee brown, golden yellow, and a soft cream background

• Selected Eras Bold ITC as the main typeface to keep the look friendly, modern, and easy to read

All of this was organized into a brand board showing logo versions, colors, and type together.

Branded Applications

To make the brand feel real, I applied the identity across several touchpoints:

• Banner/hero visual with a barista wearing a Sunrise Steam shirt, branded cup, and the logo in the background

• Storefront mockup with exterior signage and awning using the Sunrise Steam logo and wordmark

• Interior branding featuring a wall graphic with the logo above seating and branded cups on the counter

• Coffee cup mockups with sleeves featuring the logo and sun icon, showing what customers would see and hold every day

Final Deliverables

• Sunrise Steam logo and alternate lockups

• Color palette and typography selection (Eras Bold ITC)

• Brand identity board

• Banner/hero image with branded apparel and cup

• Storefront signage and awning mockup

• Interior wall graphic and in-café branding

• Coffee cup mockups

Takeaways

Sunrise Steam shows a practical way to use A.I. at the front of the process—to help with names, themes, and brand direction—while keeping the design work firmly in human hands. A.I. helped speed up the thinking; I used Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop to give the brand its final look and polish.