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Cafés, coffee shops and bakeries

Café bags

Cafés use printed bags in two ways: as merch that regulars buy and carry round town, and as a sturdy bag for beans, loaves and cake boxes. We print both in Leeds, in 1 to 4 spot colours with no fixed minimum. A one or two-colour logo on a natural or black cotton bag is where most cafés start.

Bottle green cotton shoppers printed with a cream Ropery Lane Coffee logo, hanging behind a café counter

Bags cafés choose

From a short-handle tote for the counter to a jute bag with room for a cake box.

Which bag for which job

JobBagWhy it works
Selling to regularsRecycled Cotton Marl Tote Bag or Recycled Canvas Tote BagMarl colours or a 280gsm canvas feel like something worth buying, not a freebie
Beans or a loaf to carry homeMini Cotton Tote BagAt 26 x 32.5 cm it takes a bag of beans or a loaf without swamping them
Cake boxesMidi Jute Cotton Canvas BagA 19 cm gusset, so a box sits flat in the bottom
Christmas gift setsRecycled Cotton Drawstring Stuff BagSix sizes, from a small pouch to a bag big enough for a hamper
Colour-matched to your shopfrontCotton Tote Bag Long Handle48 bag colours, from sand and bottle green to fuchsia

Loose food and hot drinks need proper food packaging. Keep beans in their own sealed bag inside a fabric one, and see our paper takeaway bags, which we quote by hand.

Natural canvas totes printed with a Two Becks Coffee Roasters logo, on a shelf beside bags of coffee by a café till

A tote on the counter

Regulars like to carry their café round with them, and a tote by the till is an easy thing to add to an order. Hang a couple on a hook where people queue, and use one yourself for the bread run.

If you're selling them, pick a bag that feels good in the hand. The 140gsm cotton totes make great giveaways; for a bag with a price tag on it, the 200gsm organic cotton or the 280gsm recycled canvas feels more like a purchase.

Light ink on a dark bag reads as shop merch straight away: cream on black or bottle green is a classic café look. Our guide to printing on dark bags covers what to watch for.

What each extra colour adds

Our example café logo has four inks. Take them away one at a time to see what each colour adds to a run of the Cotton Tote Bag Short Handle.

Colours in your logo
Per bag
£1.95
Order total
£486.50

2 colours means 2 screens: a one-off £80.00 to make, plus £0.50 a bag to print the first colour and £0.25 a bag for each extra one. The screen charge is the same whether you print 50 bags or 5,000, which is why bigger runs cost less per bag.

Live prices for the Cotton Tote Bag Short Handle, one side, ex VAT.

Getting the design right

  • Use the logo from your cups or your sign. Customers already know it, and whoever made the sign usually has the file.
  • Send a vector file (PDF, AI or EPS) if you can. What is a vector file?
  • Try it in one or two inks. Most café logos work in one colour, and every colour you drop is one less screen to pay for.
  • Give us a Pantone reference if the colour has to match your cups or paintwork. Pantone and spot colours
  • Use the back for your address or social handle, so the bag tells people where to find you.
  • Selling them? Order an unprinted sample first, so you can feel the weight and set a price.

Café and bakery bags

  • Natural mini cotton shopper printed with a Crumb & Kiln Bakery logo, holding a loaf on a cobbled street
  • Midi jute bag printed with a Parlour Cake Co. logo, with a cake box inside, on a café counter
  • Small natural drawstring bag printed with a Halfpenny Roastery logo, holding a coffee gift set on a café shelf
  • Black cotton drawstring pouch printed with a Kindling Coffee Roasters logo, on a roastery bench spilling coffee beans
    A stuff bag for a roaster's gift set
  • Black canvas tote printed with a Ropewalk Coffee logo and coffee bean in cream, on a wooden block beside a cup of coffee
    One cream ink on black
  • Natural cotton tote with pink handles printed with a Scoops Ice Cream Parlour logo, carried past a seafront kiosk
    Pink handles to match the ink

Questions people ask

Should a café sell tote bags or give them away?

Plenty do both: a lighter bag free with a bean subscription or a loyalty card, and a heavier one for sale by the till. Either way, the bag carries your name round town every time it's used.

Which bag is best for coffee beans?

The Mini Cotton Tote Bag or a small stuff bag makes a good gift bag for beans. Keep the beans in their own sealed bag inside, because a cotton bag isn't food packaging.

Can you match our cup and sign colours?

Yes. We match to your artwork file, or to Pantone references if you give us them. Choose a bag colour that suits the ink, too: cream ink on bottle green looks very different from cream on natural.

How many bags should a café order?

There's no fixed minimum, and each bag's prices start from 25. A small café might start with 50 to see how they sell. The screen charge is spread over the whole run, so larger runs cost less per bag.

Do you print paper takeaway bags?

Yes. Our paper takeaway bags are quoted by hand, with no fixed minimum. Ask us for a price.

Can you print on both sides?

Yes, up to 4 colours a side. Many cafés put the logo on the front and the address or web address on the back.