Introduction

What happens when coffee stops being just a beverage and starts becoming culture?

India’s coffee journey has unfolded in waves. The first wave was functional and accessible, led by chains like Cafe Coffee Day that made coffee shops aspirational social spaces. The second wave brought global polish with brands like Starbucks. The third wave shifted focus to specialty sourcing, single origins, and brewing precision with players such as Blue Tokai and Third Wave Coffee.

And then came Subko.

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Founded in 2020 by Rahul Reddy and Daniel Valsan Mathew, Subko did not enter the market to simply sell better coffee. It entered to redefine how specialty coffee could feel in South Asia.From Mumbai to Dubai, the brand represents what many now call the “fourth wave” of coffee in the region, one that blends global quality standards with deeply local storytelling. At Confetti, when we analyse a brand like Subko, we look beyond packaging and logo.  Here’s our take.

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What Subko Gets Exceptionally Right

Owning the Fourth Wave Narrative

Subko’s biggest strategic strength is understanding the evolution of coffee in India and deliberately positioning itself as the next chapter. While earlier specialty brands focused on educating consumers about origin, roast profiles, and brewing techniques, Subko goes further. It layers art, language, heritage, and visual identity into the experience.

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The brand is rooted in South Asian aesthetics. The word “Subko” itself is written across scripts like Hindi, Urdu, English thereby reinforcing a sense of inclusivity and cultural grounding. In Mumbai, this feels authentic & in Dubai, it resonates deeply with the Indian diaspora. When you buy from Subko, you are not buying a latte, you are buying into a narrative of modern South Asian craft.

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A Design-Led Brand at Every Touchpoint

Subko is unapologetically design-forward. Right from its photography to videography, from retail interiors to packaging, everything feels curated. The stores are architectural statements. The packaging feels collectible. Even their chocolate bars and mocha products carry a tactile, artisanal quality.

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This is where many coffee brands stop at “aesthetic.” Subko goes further into editorial-level execution. Its Instagram does not feel like a product catalogue. It feels like a cultural journal. And that consistency extends offline as well & honestly, very few Indian F&B brands manage this level of cross-platform cohesion.

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Content That Feels Like Cinema

Subko’s recent “Nafrat, Mohabbat & Matcha” series is a masterclass in tasteful brand storytelling. Instead of pushing matcha as a product, they built a cultural conversation around it. Is matcha just a Gen Z trend? Is calling it grassy lazy criticism? Is it cleaner? Is coffee superior? They staged debates & gave matcha defenders a voice. This is important because beverages are identity markers. People associate personality traits with what you drink. Subko understands that and plays into it intelligently.

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The result is content that feels cinematic and reflective, not sales-driven. It validates consumers rather than convincing them. Beyond that, their R&D series which has been cleverly named after the founders Rahul and Daniel, while also standing for Research & Development pulls audiences into the brand’s growth story. Whether it is documenting store openings in Delhi or showcasing the build process of their Dubai outlet from Mumbai Port to Jebel Ali, Subko shares the journey brick by brick. With content like this, their consumers do not feel marketed to, they feel included.

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Product Storytelling Done with Depth

Subko’s product posts go beyond flavour descriptors. They talk about origin, sourcing, roasting philosophy, and blend composition. Their mocha bars and chocolate line feel like extensions of the same creative universe. The bakehouse component reinforces this further. This tends to elevate the brand’s positioning and perception from trendy café to craft institution.

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Final Verdict

At Confetti, we rate Subko 5 out of 5.

Not because it is flawless in execution at every micro-level, but because it understands something many brands miss, the fact that “culture compounds”.

Subko is not chasing virality, it truly is building a legacy. It is shaping what specialty coffee in India and Dubai can look and feel like when rooted in regional identity rather than borrowed Western minimalism. It has mastered design language, storytelling cadence, and experiential consistency across retail, packaging, and digital.

There is no obvious gap to “fix.” The brand is operating at a level where its focus should remain on deepening the same cultural imprint as it scales.

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About Confetti

Confetti is a branding and packaging design studio that works with ambitious consumer brands across food, beverage, beauty, wellness, and lifestyle categories. We build brand worlds not just logos by ensuring consistency across packaging, retail environments, social media, and storytelling. If you are building a brand that wants to move beyond product and into culture, you can connect with us through the link beside this article.