COTE

Sweetgreen partnered with COTE Korean Steakhouse to explore how Michelin star flavors could live in a fast casual context. The core idea was to bridge fine dining and everyday dining, translating COTE’s elevated approach to Korean cuisine into a menu that felt both special and accessible.

The creative challenge was twofold: drive meaningful menu innovation while ensuring the collaboration felt culturally relevant without tipping into performance or novelty. The work needed to respect COTE’s credibility and craft while staying true to Sweetgreen’s point of view.

I oversaw the campaign’s art direction across design and photography, led creative direction for all video content, and shaped the social strategy and influencer partnerships. The campaign lived across paid and organic social, in-store and out-of-home placements, long-form video content for YouTube, and culminated in a pop-up event at COTE, creating a cohesive experience across channels.

The result was Sweetgreen’s most successful collaboration to date, exceeding sales projections and reinforcing the brand’s ability to partner credibly within the culinary world. The campaign demonstrated how thoughtful creative direction and restraint can elevate a collaboration, making it feel editorial, intentional, and culturally resonant.