The Launch of MXPSM’s Coffee Liqueur with Five Elephant

Why is collaboration important?

Collaboration sparks creativity and brings fresh ideas to the table. It allows teams to share different perspectives, which not only inspires innovation but also helps boost a brand’s visibility and credibility.

When everyone’s knowledge and expertise come together, new and exciting ideas can flow. Encouraging collaboration creates an environment where people feel comfortable thinking outside the box and sharing their ideas openly.

At the core of any successful brand collaboration, one thing is essential: a shared ethos.

An MXPSM X Five Elephant collaboration

When MXPSM (part of the Michelberger collective) approached Five Elephant about creating something together, it was clear that their values aligned. 

Whether it's the restaurant's farm-to-table philosophy or the distillery’s insistence on the highest quality standards, The Michelberger Collective’s dedication to excellence is unmistakable. 

Similarly, Five Elephant has always prided itself on transparency and building lasting relationships with farmers, ensuring not just the growth of their coffee facilities, but also the communities they support. Both brands are driven by a commitment to sustainability, authenticity, and the highest quality—making their collaboration a natural fit.

The concept

The idea for the collaboration was to raise the bar (pun for sure intended) for one of the most common spirits, the coffee liqueur.

The goal was to create a premium liqueur that captures the quality of the coffee and the intricate, traditional techniques used to distill it.

Educating Consumers on Quality

Whether it’s your local grimy dive bar or dimly lit speakeasy, every spot has its version of this drink. Unfortunately, most of them tend to be overly sweet, lack authentic coffee flavour and have a harsh alcohol finish.

Like the challenges that face specialty coffee, it’s about informing and educating the audience about why they’re paying that extra buck for it. Consumers might not be aware of the complexities involved in producing the final product, such as ethical sourcing, labour-intensive farming practices, or unique flavour profiles that are only possible from organic produce. Without this understanding, the higher price can seem unjustified.

That sparks the question, how do you get your message across to the consumer to highlight the value of supporting sustainable and ethical businesses?

Taste and Experience

We put together a launch event to bring both brands’ communities together and showcase the new product. These events are key when introducing something new—you get instant feedback, and with the founders there, it's a great chance to highlight the brand’s personality and tell the story behind it. That’s often what makes the real difference for customers when choosing a product.

With both brands deeply connected to Kreuzberg, it just felt right to host the evening here. We chose the Five Elephant Deli on this unpolished, authentic corner of Reichenberger Strasse — a perfect tribute to where it all began.

Event Planning and Strategy

In the lead-up to the event, I worked closely with the team at Michelberger to pull everything together. We coordinated press releases, sent out invites, and created event visuals for social media and newsletters. As a little teaser, we placed demo bottles of the liqueur in all our cafes, so people could sample it ahead of time, building a buzz for the launch.

Next, we teamed up with the talented bar crew from the Michelberger Hotel to create a special drink menu for the event, all centered around the coffee liqueur. They came up with everything from a classic Espresso Martini to a unique ‘Elephant Negroni,’ making sure the cocktails really showcased the product.

The event

On the night of the event, it truly felt like a celebration of the local scene. Local brewers from Berlin’s vibrant alcohol world, friends of the roastery, and neighborhood locals were all out. It was a celebration of two of Berlin’s most established hospitality brands coming together, blending their unique specialties—coffee, spirits, and hospitality. 

In the end, it wasn’t just about a coffee liqueur, it was about the people. Knowing that community isn’t just something you build—it’s something you live.

As the sun set on a beautiful May evening, we shared a toast to the future, a nod to the beauty of collaboration, and a reminder that together, we can create something far greater than ourselves.