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Early access open, Cafés & Small Retail

From empty space to a place with soul.

Describe your café or store in plain words. OTELIE turns that into a complete design concept, lighting, materials, layout, aligned to your brand and ready to guide your next design decisions.

Get my concept See examples

No design experience needed. No technical knowledge required.

142+
briefs generated
89
cafés & stores
4.9★
avg satisfaction
Concept de café gerado com OTELIE, iluminação, materiais e layout
OTELIE concept
Industrial Café · São Paulo
How it works
Three steps. No complications.
01
Survey
Tell us about your space
Upload a floor plan sketch, hand-drawn, photo, or CAD. AI reads geometry and dimensions automatically. Then add photos from 3 angles and confirm finishes: floor, walls, and ceiling.
  • Floor plan sketch (AI-read)
  • 3 required space photos
  • Dimensions & ceiling height
  • Floor, wall & ceiling finishes
1Survey
2Needs
3Concept
FLOOR PLAN SKETCH
Drag or click: photo, scan or digital AI extracts geometry and space elements
SPACE PHOTOS
Facade
Int. back
Int. front
CEILING HEIGHT
2.80
m medium
02
Needs
Define your business and concept
Tell us the type of venue, your target audience, brand name, and the aesthetic you're after. Set budget range and timeline. Optionally upload visual references, images of spaces that inspire you.
  • Type of use: café, restaurant, bar, retail
  • Target audience & brand
  • Concept keywords (minimalist, industrial…)
  • Budget range & timeline
✓Survey
2Needs
3Concept
TYPE OF USE
Café / Coffee Shop
Small Restaurant
Ice Cream Shop
Bar
DESIRED CONCEPT
Minimalist
Industrial
Cozy
Contemporary
ESTIMATED BUDGET
Up to R$ 50k
R$ 50k – 150k
R$ 150k – 300k
Above R$ 300k
03
Concept Redesign™
Receive your complete design concept
Once your briefing is submitted, our specialist team reviews every detail, photos, finishes, brand, and concept, and develops a tailored Concept Redesign™ for your space. You receive the complete conceptual PDF by email within 24 hours, to guide your design direction and align everyone involved in the project.
  • 01, New Atmosphere: palette, lighting & materials
  • 02, Visual Rhythm: layout & focal points
  • 03, Emotional Presence & storytelling
  • 04, Space Visualizations: before/after
  • 05, Sensory Concept: textures & fragrance

This is a conceptual design brief: it defines direction, atmosphere, and identity. Not a technical construction document.

✓Survey
✓Needs
3Concept
✓
BRIEFING RECEIVED
Our team is developing your concept
✓
Briefing received
2
Concept in development IN PROGRESS
3
Initial concept delivered
01
New Atmosphere
Warm lighting · Exposed brick · Timber counter
02
Visual Rhythm
Counter visible from entrance · Min. aisle 850mm
03
Emotional Presence
"A place where the city slows down"
Download PDF brief
What you get
A complete concept. In plain language.
Lighting that welcomes
Warm, not glaring. The right light for each corner, over the counter, by the tables, at the entrance. Defined as a conceptual direction for temperature, intensity, and placement.
Materials with identity
Floor, walls, counter, everything aligned to the personality of your business and your budget. No guessing at the hardware store.
Enough quiet
No echo, no noise that wears you down. A space people want to stay in. We handle the acoustics so you don't have to think about it.
Layout that flows
Where each thing makes sense, tables, counter, circulation, entrance. A space that works for your team and feels natural for your customers.
For who
For small spaces with big personalities.
for café owners
Café & Coffee Shop Owners
Opening your first location, expanding, or mid-renovation? Get a professional conceptual brief that gives your project a clear creative direction, without the consultant fees.
New openingRefitExpansion
for retail operators
Small Retail Operators
Running an independent store, concept shop, or showroom? Get lighting specs, layout guidelines, and materials that actually fit your brand, without needing a design team.
Concept storeShowroomPop-up
for architects
Architects & Fit-Out Teams
Start every client conversation with a structured specification already in hand. Generate a detailed baseline in minutes, then apply your expertise where it really counts.
Brief generationClient alignment

Let's get your space designed right.

We're onboarding a limited number of spaces in closed beta. Leave your details and we'll be in touch within 48 hours, no commitment needed.

studio@otelie.com

Portfolio: Selected projects.

Spatial design briefs generated and implemented using OTELIE Studio. Cafés, small restaurants, and retail spaces across Brazil and Europe.

Warm café interior with soft lighting, São Paulo
PRJ_01 Café
Grão, Specialty Coffee
São Paulo, BR · 72m²
Full OTELIE Studio brief implemented for a specialty coffee bar in Pinheiros. 40 covers, counter service + dine-in.
2700K RT60: 0.52s Concrete + Oak $174 plan
Minimalist concept store interior, Lisbon
PRJ_02 Retail
Forma, Concept Store
Lisbon, PT · 95m²
Retail concept store brief for a Portuguese ceramics and homeware brand. Studio brief covered product display lighting and circulation flow.
3000K accent RT60: 0.48s Plaster + Terrazzo $57 plan
Contemporary restaurant with warm atmospheric lighting, Rio
PRJ_03 Restaurant
Brasa, Contemporary Grill
Rio de Janeiro, BR · 130m²
Full environment brief for a 60-cover contemporary restaurant. Zone-based lighting, acoustic treatment, and service flow separation.
2200K–3000K RT60: 0.62s Steel + Dark Timber $174 plan
Cozy neighborhood café with warm interior
PRJ_04 Café
Lote, Neighborhood Café
Porto Alegre, BR · 48m²
Compact 24-cover neighborhood café. Single Brief plan used to spec a low-budget fit-out without compromising acoustic or lighting quality.
2700K warm RT60: 0.58s Pine + Plaster $57 plan
Curated design object store with clean displays, Curitiba
PRJ_05 Retail
Módulo, Design Object Store
Curitiba, BR · 62m²
Showroom and retail brief for a curated design object store. Accent lighting, minimal acoustic footprint.
3000K accent RT60: 0.45s White Plaster + Steel $57 plan
Wine bar and kitchen with warm European ambiance, Berlin
PRJ_06 Restaurant
Kammer, Wine Bar & Kitchen
Berlin, DE · 85m²
Wine bar and small plates restaurant. Acoustic spec critical for intimate conversation at high occupancy.
2400K warm RT60: 0.50s Brick + Linen $174 plan

Your project could be here. Generate a brief and implement it, submit your completed project for portfolio consideration.

Start a brief

Articles: Spatial design intelligence.

Technical and practical writing on spatial design, sensory specification, and AI in commercial interiors.

Warm café interior with pendant lighting and people
Featured · Technical
Why lighting temperature is the single most impactful variable in café design
Most café owners spend their budget on materials and furniture. But the variable that most directly controls how long customers stay, how much they order, and whether they return is one that costs almost nothing to specify correctly: color temperature.
May 2025 8 min read Lighting
Warm restaurant atmosphere with people
Acoustics
RT60 targets for small restaurants: what the spec means and how to hit it
Reverberation time is the most quantifiable acoustic variable in a hospitality space.
Apr 2025 6 min read
Design materials and surfaces detail
Materials
NCS color codes in spatial specification: a practical guide for non-designers
NCS codes are the standard language of material specification. Here's how to read and use them.
Mar 2025 5 min read
Restaurant layout and seating arrangement
Layout
Minimum aisle widths in F&B: the numbers that determine whether your space works
850mm. 900mm. 1100mm. These numbers govern operational flow in cafés and restaurants.
Feb 2025 4 min read
People working and discussing in a café space
AI + Design
How OTELIE Studio generates spatial specs: the model, the inputs, the outputs
A transparent look at how the platform works and where human judgment is still required.
Jan 2025 7 min read
Retail store interior with clean product display
Retail
Dwell time and conversion: how spatial layout affects sales in small retail
Every extra minute in your store increases purchase probability. Here's how layout drives that.
Dec 2024 5 min read
Café sensory experience with warm lighting and people
Sensory
The four sensory variables every café operator should know before fit-out
Light, sound, material texture, and scent. These four variables determine almost everything about customer experience.
Nov 2024 6 min read
Onyx Coffee Lab interior
Case Study
Key Lessons in Spatial Design from Onyx Coffee Lab
Recently recognized as the top coffee shop across North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, Onyx Coffee Lab demonstrates how to elevate a brand through spatial design.
May 2026 8 min read
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Onyx Coffee Lab interior with natural wood and modern design
Case Study · Featured

Key Lessons in Spatial Design from Onyx Coffee Lab

May 13, 2026 · By Priscila Mantovani, CEO Otelie · 8 min read

Recently recognized as the top coffee shop across North America, Central America, and the Caribbean at the World of Coffee San Diego, Onyx Coffee Lab demonstrates how to elevate a brand beyond its primary product.

Their philosophy centers on the final stage of the supply chain: the human experience. As they describe it: "In our cafes, our goal is that you feel welcomed, seen, and heard, and that whatever coffee or pastry you choose fits what you're looking for. It's the service at the very end that completes the supply chain. There's an art to it. We want our cafes to be full of people from our community working, reading, and having conversations."

This approach perfectly captures how I want to feel as a consumer. Although I haven't visited an Onyx Coffee Lab in person yet, studying their digital content and photography reveals exactly why they are so successful.

Three Pillars of Their Success:

Product Excellence

A commitment to providing the best product through constant improvement.

Atmosphere and People

Prioritizing the environment and the individuals within it.

Community Connection

Truly understanding and knowing their clientele. Their physical spaces are contemporary and inviting, featuring a sophisticated palette of natural wood, marble patterns, and brown faux leather.

References

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