North America's best brand development work

The shortlist for Transform Awards North America reveals that the region has much to show in the way of innovative brand development.

North America will be Transform Awards’ largest inaugural event yet. The awards; which recognise strategy and innovation in rebranding and brand development projects, currently run in Europe, the Middle East and North Africa and in the Asia-Pacific regions. Branding agencies, corporations and other organisations across Canada, Mexico, the US and other nations, have demonstrated that branding work in the North America region is of a very high standard.

The prestigious Transform Awards Europe programme has been running for six years.  Rob Meyerson, head of global naming at HP and Transform Awards judge, says “It was an honour to get to judge the first Transform Awards in North America. I was truly impressed by the quality and diversity of entries. The winners should be especially proud, as their submissions represent some of the best brand strategy and creative work in the industry today.” 

The shortlist for Transform Awards North America has just been announced and those that have made the cut include Oregon-based brand experience agency SET Creative, global brand agency Brand Union and GlaxoSmithKline for ‘Best use of packaging’, not-for-profit organisation Meals on Wheels for ‘Best external stakeholder relations during a brand development project’ and creative design and brand strategy agency DesignStudio and Airbnb for ‘Best creative strategy’. Categories are grouped under ‘Content’, ‘Process’, ‘Strategy’, ‘Type’, ‘Sector’ and the most prestigious awards, ‘Best overall visual identity’ and ‘Grand prix for excellence in rebranding’, the winners of which will be announced on the night of the awards ceremony.

The entries in each category were judged by a panel of industry experts, including representatives from The Economist, HP, Prudential and RBC Wealth. All winners will be announced at a ceremony on Tuesday 27 October 2015 at the Espace venue in New York. The event is a platform for organisations to share their brand transformation stories, as well as celebrate their work and progress.

The awards ceremony will be preceded by the Transform Conference North America, which will deliver a series of informative sessions. Topics covered include innovation, brand implementation, brand experience focusing on the financial services sector and a trio of rebranding case studies. The event provides a current look at the brand landscape and the opportunity to share ideas and experiences with peers. The conference is a chance to discuss the ongoing influence of brand and reputation management.

For more information about the Transform awards programme or the conference, please contact Liz Foggitt by email (lfoggitt@transformmagazine.net) or call +44 20 7998 6263.

The shortlist for the inaugural Transform Awards North America is as follows:

 

CONTENT

Best use of a visual property; photography/illustration/digital
Azur Global and Brand Diet
Crave It Restaurant Group and Jump Branding & Design Inc 
Nomura and Living Group

Best brand experience
DeviantArt and Moving Brands
Ferrero de Mexico and 121
Nike Western Europe and SET
PIRCH and FITCH

Best use of packaging
Anheuser-Busch InBev and Pearlfisher
GlaxoSmithKline and Brand Union
Heineken International and VBAT
Patrón and Pearlfisher

PROCESS

Best external stakeholder relations during a brand development project
Meals on Wheels America
Greenbrier Companies and MerchantCantos

Best internal communications during a brand development project
CH2M and FutureBrand
CVS Health and Siegel+Gale
TransUnion and Avenue Group LLC

STRATEGY

Best creative strategy
Airbnb and DesignStudio
Murata and Living Group
Nomura and Living Group
Wolfgang Puck and Pearlfisher

Best brand evolution
CVS Health and Siegel+Gale 
Equinox and The Partners
Pitney Bowes and FutureBrand
TransUnion and Avenue Group 
Volta and Butchershop

Best strategic/creative development of a new brand
City of Mississauga and Trajectory
Crave It Restaurant Group and Jump Branding & Design Inc
CVS Health and Siegel+Gale

TYPE

Best brand development project to reflect changed mission/values/positioning
CVS Health and Siegel+Gale
Suncor and Appetite Consultancy
Wesgroup Equipment and Rex Image

Best rebrand of a digital property
The Canadian Olympic Committee and Zync Agency
DeviantArt and Moving Brands
Vinson & Elkins and Living Group

SECTOR

Best visual identity from the education sector
Penn State and Jerry Kuyper Partners LLC

Best visual identity from the energy & extractives sector
Suncor and Appetite 

Best visual identity from the engineering and manufacturing sector 
Alchemix and Scholle IPN 
Oplite Technologies and Grant Marketing

Best visual identity from the financial services sector
Blue Matrix and Living Group
Gottex and Living Group

Best visual identity from the healthcare & pharmaceuticals sector
Alchemix and Scholle IPN
iMedicare and Storience

Best visual identity from the industrial & basic materials sector 
Alchemix and Scholle IPN 
Chemours and Brand Union
Wesgroup Equipment and Rex Image

Best visual identity from the professional services sector
CH2M and FutureBrand 
ICR and Thackway McCord 
Vinson & Elkins and Living Group

Best visual identity from the property sector
CBRE and Brand Union

Best visual identity from the technology, media & telecommunications sector
Azur Global and Brand Diet 
Blue Matrix and Living Group 
DeviantArt and Moving Brands 
Murata and Living Group
Pitney Bowes and FutureBrand 
Tegna and Siegel+Gale

Best visual identity from the travel & leisure sector
Airbnb and DesignStudio
Portland Streetcar Inc. and Spoke