Story in brief:
"Who owns the vision?" That's a question the identity consultant/designer must often ask, because essentially their task is to discover, express and advance a leader's vision. In 99 cases it's the CEO (who may have started the identity ball rolling, but more often was awakened to ownership in the course of the rebranding process – which tends to ask questions only the CEO can answer). Lineage is the 100th case; key investors, not executives, created the vision and commissioned an identity for it.

Four years ago Adam Forste and Kevin Marchetti formed the private investment house Bay Grove Capital, and acquired the Seattle-based Seafreeze Cold Storage, the first in a succession of regional acquisitions of similar companies who serve food industry needs for refrigerated and freezer warehousing. This is a case of creative, hands-on investors, who see growth in combining independent, mostly family-owned entities into one much bigger, much stronger contender, usefully leveraging scale efficiencies in performance and marketing – and most important, who see how a radical rebranding can make it all happen, virtually in an instant.

To create the needed master brand, the Bay Grove partners chose consultants Marshall Strategy, based also in SF, headed by Ken Pasternak and the Landor veteran Phil Durbrow (who Marchetti knew from a previous branding). Marshall Strategy, which subcontracts design work, engaged Jerry Kuyper, another Landor alumnus, as creative director for the assignment.

Strategy discussions clarified the need to celebrate the heritage and retain the regional equities of the acquired companies (both past and future), while absorbing them in the new, larger whole. This "heritage" idea is reflected in the name "Lineage," the best survivor in a full-blown naming exercise. (Yes, a real-word solution proved to be legally available and protectable.) Addition of the formal-name extension "Logistics" communicates the industry context. As Forste puts it, "Our name pays homage to heritage, yet points to the way forward, and suggests the connectivity at the core of our logistics business."

Kuyper's logo combines a symbol with a wordmark. "The symbol conveys the movement, control and precision inherent in logistics," he wrote for the standards manual. "It also shows different elements coming together to make a stronger whole. The wordmark reinforces the concept of movement and connection"

Brand architecture will be monolithic. Though the old logos are to disappear, Pasternak proposed that for a transition period, local unit names retain their previous initials as well as their place name. Thus Flint River Services will sign itself Lineage/FRS Savannah or FRS Albany, and Richmond Cold Storage will be Lineage/RCS Richmond or RCS Norfolk. (This is a migration strategy; Forste expects that the initials will in due course become expendable.)

A few days before public launch, employees convened in 'town halls' at each facility for a dramatic unveiling; key customers also got a preview. Adam Forste reports that "The reception has been terrific. The rebranding required considerable forethought and planning, but has quickly become one of the most impactful events since we started acquiring."

Credits:
"C.E.O." - Adam Forste and Kevin Marchetti, partners in Bay Grove Capital
Identity counsel & naming - Ken Pasternak with Phil Durbrow,
Marshall Strategy
Identity design - Jerry Kuyper, Jerry Kuyper Partners; symbol and typography refinements by Joe Finocchiaro. (Yes, it's the same team that designed ABM and Cisco.)

First Impressions:
Strategy: In having recognized that identity can be a powerful tool for leveraging undervalued acquisitions, in this case through brand consolidation, these investors are too rare a model. Venture capital firms and investment bankers everywhere should take note: if sound fundamentals are in place, rebranding can assure and accelerate desired change. Make identity experts part of your teams.
Naming: Real words do have an authenticity advantage, however slight, and can quickly gain acceptance as merely a name almost regardless of literal meaning. It does help, however, to offer a narrative at launch; thus "lineage" offers "family-businesses heritage" plus the idea of connectedness (which the formal-name addition of "Logistics" also helps to plant.)
Design: The shield is visually appealing; it complements the distinctive wordmark, rather than competing with it. I love the color gradation, done with just three flat (and cool) hues. And it is communicatively appropriate on several levels – in its promise of protection, in symbolizing the contributions of multiple parts to a new whole – and most importantly, by connecting "lineage" to heraldry, the shield helps to sell and seat the name.

Other Comments:

Corporate Brand Matrix ratings:
0% structural, 100% strategic, 0% functional (est.)

Absorbing ..

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