Juan Valdez is a fictional character who has appeared in advertisements for the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia since 1958, representing a Colombian coffee farmer. The advertisements were designed by the

Doyle Dane Bernbach DDB Worldwide Communications Group LLC, known internationally as DDB, is a worldwide marketing communications network. It is owned by Omnicom Group, one of the world's largest advertising holding companies. The international advertising networks ...

ad agency, with the goal of distinguishing 100%-

Colombian coffee Coffee production in Colombia has a reputation for producing mild, well-balanced coffee beans. Colombia's average annual coffee production of 11.5 million bags is the third total highest in the world, after Brazil and Vietnam, though highe ...

from coffee blended with beans from other countries. He typically appears with his donkey Conchita, carrying sacks of harvested coffee beans. He has become an icon for Colombia as well as coffee in general, and Juan Valdez's iconic appearance is frequently mimicked or parodied in television and other media. The Juan Valdez character is used as an ''ingredient brand'', to specifically denote coffee beans that are only grown and harvested in Colombia. Part of the advertising campaign includes convincing consumers that there are specific benefits of Colombian-grown and harvested coffee beans, "including how soil components, altitude, varieties and harvesting methods create good flavor." The National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia is entirely owned and controlled by Colombia's coffee farmers (cafeteros) which number over 500,000 people.

History

Juan Valdez was designed by the DDB advertising founder

William Bernbach William Bernbach (August 13, 1911 – October 2, 1982) was an American advertising creative director. He was one of the three founders in 1949 of the international advertising agency Doyle Dane Bernbach (DDB). He directed many of the firm's breakt ...

in 1958 to promote coffee in the US. Juan Valdez was initially portrayed by a Cuban actor, José F. Duval in both print advertisements and on television until 1969. José Duval died in 1993 at the age of 72. Juan Valdez had been embodied by Carlos Sánchez since 1969, and his commercials were voiced over by

Norman Rose Norman Rose (June 23, 1917 – November 12, 2004) was an American actor, film narrator and radio announcer whose velvety baritone was often called "the Voice of God" by colleagues. He was best known as the narrator's voice in the fictitious coffee ...

. Sánchez played Valdez in a brief sequence in the 2003 comedy film ''

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''. In 2006, Sánchez announced his retirement, and Carlos Castañeda, a grower from the town of Andes, Antioquia, was selected by the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia as the new face of Juan Valdez. Castañeda died in April 2024.

Brand

"Juan Valdez", was registered with the

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back in 1960. The letters and stylized form of the name "Juan Valdez” is internationally protected through the

Madrid system The Madrid System, also known as the Madrid Protocol, is the primary international system for facilitating the registration of trademarks in multiple jurisdictions around the world. It was established pursuant to the multilateral treaties ''Mad ...

, and registered in many countries including the European countries and United States. There were 238 Juan Valdez coffee shops in 2013, 135 in Colombia and 35 shops in other countries. Juan Valdez brand coffee is available in

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and the

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at supermarkets and Juan Valdez coffee shops. In 2022, it was reported there were 500 Juan Valdez cafés.

Controversies

The name "Juan Valdez" is by no means unique, as both Juan and Valdez are common Spanish-language names and there are possibly thousands of men with this name alive today (although the Valdez name is hardly known in the coffee growing regions of Colombia); this became relevant in a 2006

lawsuit A lawsuit is a proceeding by one or more parties (the plaintiff or claimant) against one or more parties (the defendant) in a civil court of law. The archaic term "suit in law" is found in only a small number of laws still in effect today ...

over the phrase " Juan Valdez drinks Costa Rican coffee". The National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia sued cartoonist Mike Peters, creator of '' Mother Goose & Grimm'', for a cartoon talking about Juan Valdez and Colombian coffee in January 2009. In a weeklong series making fun of various commercial products, he referenced violence in Colombia by having a character say: "Y'know, there's a big crime syndicate in Colombia. So when they say there's a little bit of Juan Valdez in every can, maybe they're not kidding." The lawsuit was dropped after Mr. Peters apologized publicly.

Gallery

Image:"Juan Valdez" actor.jpg, An actor plays Juan Valdez at the National Coffee Park in Montenegro, Colombia. Image:Juanvaldez.png, Carlos Sánchez, the "old" Juan Valdez (died in 2018).

References

External links

Página oficial de Juan Valdez

Juan's Impact on Fresh Roasted Coffee

Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia

Café de Colombia

Juan Valdez Café

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish Imperial period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city, capital and largest city ...