Turtle
Rethinking Energy. Advancing Tomorrow.
Rethinking Energy. Advancing Tomorrow.
Situation
Turtle & Hughes began in 1923 as a family-owned and operated company distributing electrical equipment to businesses in the Lower Manhattan area. Remember, this was a time when electrification was still a revolutionary industry and only a third of American households had electricity. They were bold young entrepreneurs helping to create the future.
Over the next 100 years, the cutting-edge company continued to be a thought leader in its field, delivering groundbreaking products and innovative solutions for a wide variety of business and industrial applications. Today, Turtle has over 800 employees in locations across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.
Over the next 100 years, the cutting-edge company continued to be a thought leader in its field, delivering groundbreaking products and innovative solutions for a wide variety of business and industrial applications. Today, Turtle has over 800 employees in locations across the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and Puerto Rico.
Now, Turtle’s fourth-generation leaders are ready to take the company forward into the next century and beyond. Proud of their heritage and history but ready to boldly rethink and recreate their business model for a future they are again helping to shape.
After a year of comprehensive research and planning, the team is launching a radically new strategic business advancement program that will reaffirm Turtle’s place at the front of the industry and create new value for its customers.
At the heart of this strategy is a brand refresh that signals their intentions for the future and lets both new and existing customers know that it is NOT business as usual: Turtle is a company pointed at tomorrow.
To assist them on this ambitious undertaking, they needed a creative partner who fully grasped the brand’s 100-year journey and could help them create a modern and inspiring new brand identity without abandoning the past. They are keenly aware that today’s complex, digital, and ruthlessly competitive marketplace has made brand leveraging as important among B2B businesses as those marketing directly to consumers. In order to compete, even B2B businesses must find compelling ways to stand out in the market, show their value, and tell their stories.
Solution
As a partner to Turtle, we were tasked with driving the company’s new strategic business initiative through the lens of a major brand redesign that would embody Turtle’s redefined core brand mission: Rethinking Energy. Advancing Tomorrow. The reimagined brand identity would be a powerful tool to signal this paradigm shift and launch conversations about the company’s impressive array of new offerings and value services.
We were privileged to work closely with Jayne Millard, whose entrepreneurial spirit and keenly focused business vision reflect those of co-founder M.B. Turtle, Millard’s own great-grandfather. In 2012, Millard was honored with the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award for her commitment to employee collaboration and innovation and adding customer value across all supply chain components. We are also proud to work with a company certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC).
Throughout the creative process, we sought to develop an iconic brand identity that would stand the test of time, as recognizable and enduring as the likes of Apple and IBM. The primary challenge was creating a new identity that would embody the company’s modern vision and maintain continuity with its rich heritage.
Back in 1923, the company had centered its brand identity on Relay, an illustrative turtle mascot that served both as an affectionate nod to the company founder and the playful personification of an electrical relay switch, symbolic of the industry. Our goal was to reimagine Relay in a way that reminds us of the company’s long history even as it re-energizes the symbol to represent the bright, innovative future ahead. A 100-year-old logo, revised and renewed, but still recognizable today.
The solution is a modern, futuristic energizing multi-dimensional symbol that evokes the iconic turtle shape while giving it a contemporary feel to mirror the Turtle of today. No matter how it is rendered, the shapes and color remain immediately recognizable as the Turtle brand. It is a highly flexible and dynamic identity perfectly suited to a company focused on innovation and invention.
The identity is now being brought to life across the company and marketplace, rebranding all customer touchpoints and putting a new public face on this time-honored industry giant. It will be a full refresh of every single marketing asset, from digital communications to branded merchandise. The new corporate HQ in New Jersey will be a flagship experience immersing employees and customers in the new brand identity in the most strategic and engaging way possible.
Back in 1923, the company had centered its brand identity on Relay, an illustrative turtle mascot that served both as an affectionate nod to the company founder and the playful personification of an electrical relay switch, symbolic of the industry. Our goal was to reimagine Relay in a way that reminds us of the company’s long history even as it re-energizes the symbol to represent the bright, innovative future ahead. A 100-year-old logo, revised and renewed, but still recognizable today.
The solution is a modern, futuristic energizing multi-dimensional symbol that evokes the iconic turtle shape while giving it a contemporary feel to mirror the Turtle of today. No matter how it is rendered, the shapes and color remain immediately recognizable as the Turtle brand. It is a highly flexible and dynamic identity perfectly suited to a company focused on innovation and invention.
The identity is now being brought to life across the company and marketplace, rebranding all customer touchpoints and putting a new public face on this time-honored industry giant. It will be a full refresh of every single marketing asset, from digital communications to branded merchandise. The new corporate HQ in New Jersey will be a flagship experience immersing employees and customers in the new brand identity in the most strategic and engaging way possible.
The challenges of capturing the story of a 100-year-old family business that has navigated the
challenges of a century of innovation is not easy. Our people are passionate about their legacy.
Pencil Worx designed an elegant and compelling brand that will ride the wave of the next century.
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Jayne Millard, Executive Chairman of the Board
Turtle.com
challenges of a century of innovation is not easy. Our people are passionate about their legacy.
Pencil Worx designed an elegant and compelling brand that will ride the wave of the next century.
_
Jayne Millard, Executive Chairman of the Board
Turtle.com
Pencil Worx transformed a symbolic family representative known at Relay who captured our 100-year legacy and spirit into a modern, futuristic energizing multi-dimensional brand that captures not only where we have been and who we are but, most importantly, guides us forward to the solutions we can provide our customers in our next century of impact.
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Kathleen Shanahan, Chief Executive Officer
Turtle.com
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Kathleen Shanahan, Chief Executive Officer
Turtle.com
