Oatly was launching BarIsta: a series that extends a café's hours into the evening and brings its existing community back into a space they already know. Chicago was the kickoff. They leaned on Bueno to bring the Chicago spirit and asked us to pull from our own preferences so the night felt authentic to us, and to Oatly.

Brand activations at local venues tend to flatten the venue to make room for the brand. The café or bar's own character becomes background. We wanted the opposite: for Oatly's night at Bueno to still feel like a night at Bueno, with Oatly sitting inside a room that stayed itself.

Oatly wanted the series to sit inside the neighborhood it was in, not on top of it. Bueno is a Chicago coffee bar and creative studio built on the same instinct: grounded, warm, and current. What we shared was a bias for the specific: Chicago the way we actually experience it, not the way it usually gets marketed.

A Friday night at Bueno.

Capped at 125 guests and hit capacity. The night strengthened the Bueno–Oatly relationship both brands are continuing to work with and support each other.