WatchHouse: Combining minimalism with approachability for a global coffee audience

Key takeaways

• WatchHouse is a London-based specialty coffee roaster that emphasises interior design, simplified packaging, and accessible coffee education.
• Over the past 11 years, the business has expanded to include 20 locations across two continents.
• WatchHouse’s story demonstrates the need for a distinctive identity that can seamlessly translate across continents and demographics.

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Roaster of the Week is a series that focuses on specialty coffee roasters and their unique stories. This week, we spoke to WatchHouse, a London-based roaster expanding its locations across the United States.

Coffee culture can be intimidating to newcomers. There’s a knowledge barrier that can make it difficult for curious minds to ask questions about single origins and the roasting process, for example. Nestled in south London, WatchHouse blends refinement with approachability to create a sophisticated, accessible environment for coffee lovers of all experience levels.

The company first opened its doors in 2014 on Bermondsey Street, London. Its first location was a refurbished watch house that previously functioned as a shelter for men guarding the graveyard of St. Mary Magdalen’s Church. The building gave WatchHouse both its name and its distinctive character, which remain essential in everything it does today.

To learn more about WatchHouse’s story and its focus on creating a coffee experience that goes beyond flavour, I spoke to Roland Horne, the founder and CEO. Read on for his insight.

How WatchHouse creates a memorable environment in its coffee shops

WatchHouse’s coffee experience starts from the moment a customer steps in the front door of a location. “From the start, it’s never just been about coffee,” Roland says. “It’s about how people feel when they walk into one of our Houses: welcomed, looked after, and part of something considered.”

To achieve this, WatchHouse curates everything from interior design to how baristas serve customers. “It starts with how we hire – we look for warmth, curiosity, and emotional intelligence. No people who sneer at basic questions or make others feel small. That kind of superiority complex has no place in our Houses.

“Instead, we focus on creating an environment where people feel like they can ask questions and be met with generosity.”

How WatchHouse uses minimalist packaging for storytelling

One area in which WatchHouse separates itself from other coffee roasters is in its approach to packaging. Inside each of its boxes, customers find a topographic map with details about that specific coffee. This includes the altitude at which it was grown, the farmer’s details, and the processing method. It’s designed to enhance traceability, which is increasingly important to coffee consumers.

“Each box carries something personal: producer highlights, quotes from our team, and short notes about why we selected that particular coffee,” Roland explains. “It’s not just about origin; it’s about people, place, and purpose.”

WatchHouse uses Keaykolour stock for its boxes – a material the company has trusted for years. This is a type of paper that is particularly suited to pastel colours and a slightly rough texture. It’s intended to create a distinctive experience that combines minimalist designs with a memorable textural experience.

It operates with a minimalist design philosophy, which is growing in popularity for coffee packaging. The goal is to use as little flashy design as possible, with simple colours and structures. “Stripping back the packaging, for us, is a form of respect for the product, for the producer, and for the customer,” he explains.

“Coffee is complex, nuanced, and full of stories. We don’t want the packaging to shout over that. Instead, we design in a way that leaves room for curiosity. We want the person holding the box to feel like there’s something worth discovering.”

WatchHouse is also known for its collaborations and limited editions, which often change with the seasons. “Those boxes are an opportunity to explore new materials, colours, and formats, but always through the WatchHouse lens,” he notes. This places the packaging as both an important branding tool but also an evolving canvas for new designs and experiments.

Expansion across London and the United States

In the 11 years since it opened, WatchHouse has expanded across both England and the United States. Now, it operates more than 20 locations, has its own roastery, and invites guest roasters for one-off collaborations. Despite this success, none of it comes at the expense of Roland’s initial vision. “Design still leads. People still come first,” he says.

WatchHouse’s take on refined specialty coffee without the ego is helping the business gain more traction than ever. Its first US location opened in Midtown Manhattan in 2024. Featuring neutral décor designed to evoke warmth and aligned with its packaging colours, the 1,500-square-foot building serves coffee roasted in Brooklyn. 

Despite WatchHouse’s impressive expansion, though, the core values remain present in each location. Roland explains that the company’s US menus and coffee selections closely resemble those of the UK locations, although business logistics make a complete replica impossible. 

That’s just the start. WatchHouse hopes to bring its dedication to the coffee experience to more regions as it expands further. “There’s a lot to admire about the US: the scale of the market, the pace, and, frankly, the baseline of customer service is often stronger than what we see in Europe,” he explains. “Americans are good at hospitality; they make people feel seen.”

However, he wants to ensure those Bermondsey Street philosophies of design and craft remain present across the business. “Where [the United States] often falls short is in refinement. That’s true in coffee, and it’s true more broadly. The instinct is often toward scale and repeatability, rather than precision and artistry,” he says.

WatchHouse’s most recent project involved opening a new House in New York’s esteemed Chrysler Building. The new location combines the building’s history and scale with the warmth and softness of WatchHouse’s interior design. It means that no matter where it pops up, customers will know that the WatchHouse experience is just as distinctive.

While each WatchHouse location is different, they all share the same goal: “to offer a coffee experience that feels welcoming, elevated, and deeply considered, without pressure or pretension,” Roland concludes.

WatchHouse’s story is a testament to the need for distinctive design and branding for coffee businesses. In a hugely competitive market, it’s essential to create an identity that consumers will remember but also allows the coffee to stand for itself.

At MTPak Coffee, we offer a range of custom coffee packaging services. From full-scale printing with low MOQs and one-week turnarounds to design services, you can ensure the packaging meets your needs.

Contact the MTPak Coffee team to learn more about our coffee bag design services.

Frequently asked questions

What is WatchHouse?

WatchHouse is a specialty coffee roaster and a range of coffee shops founded in 2014 on Bermondsey Street, London. It now operates more than 20 locations across England and the United States.

What makes WatchHouse different from other coffee businesses?

As a business focused on coffee shops as well as roasting, design is the most important aspect for WatchHouse. It uses minimalist designs for its coffee packaging and coffee shop interiors to make them both feel inviting and visually distinctive.

How does WatchHouse’s design align with its philosophies?

WatchHouse focuses on making specialty coffee more welcoming and accessible. To achieve this, its packaging is designed with simplicity in mind, containing key details that allow consumers to learn more without overly crowding the packaging. It also releases limited edition boxes with unique packaging to distinguish between products.