FACECUP is the brainchild of hairstylist, design enthusiast, fashionisto, and my dear friend Tommaso Dall'Osso.  I met Tommaso in a New York Salon some years ago, where we started our friendship over a midnight cake fight and prosecco. Since then, his career has been growing in New York and now in Milano, where he has re-relocated to further develop his artistry. So, imagine my surprise when he informed me that he was starting a business, which combined fashion, design, health, 'eco-chic', the salon experience and a good cup of Italian coffee, I had to have him elaborate on this concept. What does coffee and hair have to do with each other? Then imagine my bigger shock when he announced that he would be moving to Seoul for a few months (or so...)? I needed to pry and find out what was going on in the life of someone who I see as up-and-coming in the Milano scene, and what his motivations were for this coffee brand, which has such a unique place within the coffee and fashion industries. 

FACECUP is a stylishly branded Italian coffee for everyone. It is meant to make the consumer feel empowered through it's sheer sexiness, and its overall eco-chic philosophy. "Facecup is meant to make you smile," Tommaso reiterates as I ask him where he sees the brand evolving. It frames its business ethos on the fusion and balance of opposites, especially when it relates to cultural disparities, whilst maintaining an environmental and Fair Trade stance. The latter is projected holistically through as they offer Joana Carvalho's Eco-Kit for Coffee, which is a made from biopolymer, non-polluting, biodegradable materials produced from a single injection mold and contains a saucer, cup with handle and spoon. The coffees and teas draw on his teams' cultural backgrounds and experiences across five continents, which is epitomised in the very nature of the branding. With names like Giorgio to describe a very Italian coffee, or God Shave the Queen to represent his Ceylon English Breakfast Tea, these drinks not only reference pop culture and comedic wordplay, but also promotes a healthy lifestyle through the added vitamins that promote internal and external rejuvenation.

What follows is an interview with the CEO & Founder of FACECUP, Tommaso Dall'Osso.  

WHAT DOES FACECUP MEAN? In Italian it means FACCIATAZZA [literally FACEMUG] but it doesn´t work at all! (Just kidding). FACECUP is first of all a social coffee brand. It´s designed to  make people share emotions, art, experiences and fun! It is a social-product. Analyzing the project after a year of hard work, I noticed that a “facecup” is the way we used to draw faces at the age of 3 years old [See images of the faces on the packaging]. I don´t want to sound funny, but I think this is the reason why the brand is so familiar to everyone!

WHAT MAKES FACECUP SO SPECIAL? It is specially formulated with vitamins, minerals and nutrients that offer unique benefit options to consumers with an on-the-go lifestyle. FACECUP begins with water and high quality Italian coffee powder; next is the addition of the finest quality vitamins and nutrients, based upon prevailing nutritional science and validated by consumer research. Finally, an Italian-American unique branding that adds flavour and colour to every single cup in a way that is particularly conducive to the product’s philosophy SMILE DRINK LOOK BETTER. The formula in FACECUP incorporates a blend of vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that work synergistically to meet the needs of consumers with a UP lifestyle, offering special benefits to hair and skin beauty.

**CALLING ALL MILANESE & PEOPLE IN MILAN: Join FACECUP and other creative minds at the WOMADE Event TOMORROW: Saturday, 29 September 2012 from 22h00-04h00 at CHIOSTRI DI SAN BARNABA. Address: San Barnaba 48, MILANO (P.ta Romana).