Since 2009, 100% has been specialising in the installation of retail and visual merchandising displays. After years of partnering with design agencies and display producers to deliver in-store installations for major brands, they were keen to explore the opportunities of working more directly with retail brands themselves.
Having already completed several direct projects, 100% had seen how the greater project visibility and higher profit margins of working this way could benefit everyone involved. But low awareness with prospects made it difficult to build more direct relationships.
This put 100% in the delicate position of needing to promote their direct capabilities to retail brands more aggressively, without alienating their existing customer base of agencies and producers. We worked together to overcome this challenge by creating a brand that could appeal to both audiences simultaneously.
Before we started working together, 100% had done very little strategic marketing. When we reviewed the original brief, we outlined several clear challenges and provided recommendations on how we could overcome these issues with a stronger brand repositioning.
Low brand awareness and unclear positioning were making it difficult to grab the attention of retail brands. This was magnified by many competitors making hollow promises about their own international reach, despite being unable to match 100%’s capability in this area.
In order to achieve their ambitious financial growth targets, we knew we needed to create a brand identity that used 100%’s impressive international network of installers to position them as an ideal direct partner for international retail brands. We’d then be able to leverage this new brand to ignite strong future growth and market engagement.
To give our strategy a solid foundation, we conducted internal and external research with stakeholders, colleagues and customers. The research showed that 100%’s understanding of challenges at every level and their ability to handle international projects with a single point of contact were heavily valued by clients.
But the real nugget we uncovered was that 100% offers the most value when they’re dealing with tight deadlines, multiple locations, and complex installs. So, we distilled this insight into a confident brand proposition: “The real challenge is where we shine”. This confidence runs through the entire visual identity, using bold aspirational statements and strong typography to invite brands to bring their most intimidating projects directly to 100% Group’s door.
We used geometric shapes and connecting lines to reflect agility, collaboration and 100%’s ability to find solutions regardless of location. Combined with contemporary use of layout and colour, this gave 100% stand out in their market and appeal to design-minded merchandising and retail teams, as well as their existing audience of design agencies and producers too.
I’m delighted that we’re already seeing the rebrand deliver a tangible return on investment, having played a role in attracting and converting a long-term contract, which will make a significant financial contribution to our revenues over the coming years. We’ve certainly noticed an increase in engagement with brands direct, and that was a key objective driving the rebrand. We couldn’t really ask for much more than that from Upp B2B.
Attracting business, retaining clients and grabbing attention
After debuting at Retail Design Expo (retail design and merchandising’s top annual event) clients and peers were all hugely positive about the brand. As you can see, this is reflected in the brand’s performance following launch:
- Brand launch sparked conversations with nine household brands
- Work with pre-existing retail brands has significantly increased
- Several brands have contacted 100% directly via the website
- Direct relationships with retail brands have increased by over 50%
