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Project RE:Brand

Breathing new life into business with the help of branding experts.

Packaging Redesign - CitraSolv redesigns their packaging with the apartment.

  • Series 1 Launching an Impactful Marketing Campaign /media/rebrand/Amex_mocada_01sm.jpg /projectrebrand/impactful-marketing
  • Series 2 Designing a Winning Web Experience /media/rebrand/Amex_FinishLine_01_sm.jpg /projectrebrand/website-design
  • Series 3 Creating Effective Advertising /media/rebrand/AY_ep1_th.png /projectrebrand/effective-advertising
  • Series 5 Unifying a Luxury Brand /media/rebrand/AE_ep1_th.jpg /projectrebrand/luxury-branding

View Transcript

(MUSIC UP)
WOMAN
American Express Open is empowering business owners to follow our new mini-series as we pair different small businesses, each with their own experienced branding agency who is also a small business. Small business owners Steve and Melissa Zeitler of CitraSolv, a range of natural green products, is (sic) about to undergo an exciting brand transformation.
STEVE ZEITLER
I’ve been doing this since 1977. So a little over 30 … 30 plus years. CitraSolv was originally founded as a janitor supply company. This product, um, now is probably one of the most widely distributed natural cleaner (sic) in the natural foods industry.
MELISSA ZEITLER
It makes us feel very, very proud to put out a product that people feel that connected to.
WOMAN
Steve and Melissa are being paired with an experienced branding agency – the apartment.
STEFAN BOUBLIL
My name is Stefan Boublil and I’m the founder of the apartment creative agency.
LISA SIMPSON
I’m Lisa and on this project I’m going to be the head designer.
MELISSA ZEITLER
One of our biggest problems has always been the name, believe it or not. It’s a very hard name to work a line around.
STEVE ZEITLER
When people talk about CitraSolv, you don’t know if they’re talking about the brand or the product.
LISA SIMPSON
My first impressions of the CitraSolv brand is that it’s a great product and … but it’s a little bit disjointed as a brand. It needs a little bit of help to bring its story together on the shelf.
STEFAN BOUBLIL
Planning your brand from the beginning in a very considered way saves you cost in the long run. The decisions that you make will always be made based on a foundation that is solid.
WOMAN
CitraSolv makes the journey to Soho, New York City, to meet Stefan and Lisa at the apartment.
STEFAN BOUBLIL
The first step, which is really the most important, is the one at which we find out who they are, what they do, what makes them tick, what keeps them up at night?
LISA SIMPSON
Can I ask a question about the … on the names. Obviously CitraSolv is a very powerful name. You know, people resonate (Overlap)
MELISSA ZEITLER
Right.
LISA SIMPSON
… with it. So why then did you make the decision not to be CitraSolv dishwashing site, or CitraSolv drain cleaner (Overlap)
MELISSA ZEITLER
No. Believe (Overlap)
LISA SIMPSON
Or whatever (Inaudible) (Overlap)
MELISSA ZEITLER
… me … we … we (Laughs) … this has been a topic of conversation over and over (Overlap)
STEVE ZEITLER
For months.
MELISSA ZEITLER
… and over.
STEVE ZEITLER
Do we make everything CitraSolv and then make that the umbrella? Or can we use the Citra name in some fashion and a look of the products to bring it together as a family?
STEFAN BOUBLIL
I really want people to be able to know what CitraSolv is about without picking up the bottle.
STEVE ZEITLER
I brought you some … some stuff. (Laughs)
LISA SIMPSON
Some light reading.
MELISSA ZEITLER
Some light reading. (Laughs)
STEVE ZEITLER
Some light reading.
(CUT)
STEVE ZEITLER
I think hearing … hearing from us and finding out the lineage or the legacy, they are starting to realize there’s more to this than just this natural cleaner.
STEFAN BOUBLIL
Good branding, good design, meaningful design will help cement a small business’ standing on the marketplace.
MELISSA ZEITLER
From this first meeting, I have a pretty strong feeling that we’re going to have a lot of communication (Laughs) and there’s going to be probably a lot of demands on us to feed them the information that they need. We’re going to have to really open our minds. I … I think, um … I think we’re going to be educated.
(MUSIC/WORDS ON SCREEN)
WOMAN
Next I mean, the apartment presents the ideas following the end of the first discovery phase.
(END OF TAPE)

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Partnership

  • CitraSolv

    CitraSolv, LLC manufactures and distributes natural, biodegradable cleaning, air fresheners and personal care products. We believe in living and doing business in an environmentally-friendly manner, and use naturally-derived, non-toxic, renewable resources including essential oils and plant-based surfactants for our products.

    See Business Profile 

  • the apartment

    Our NYC-based agency offering fully-integrated branding, marketing, architecture and interior design services was born from a need to consider our lives, bit by bit, little by little, thoroughly, absolutely.

    See Business Profile 

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