Client
Tandem Center for Shared Business Success
Services
Brand Naming & Development
Print & Digital Collateral
Website Design
Ongoing Marketing Strategy
Founded by Chip Cargas, the semi-retired founder of the Lancaster-based software company Cargas, Tandem Center for Shared Business Success is a start-up nonprofit that collaboratively works with business owners to help them utilize profit sharing and/or direct employee ownership to achieve business goals, empower employees, and bolster company culture.
The Tandem brand is the result of a collaborative partnership between Chip, the Tandem Board, and Fig Industries, as we spearheaded the naming, brand design, and launch strategy to position Tandem as the leading expert in direct employee ownership.
Naming & Visual Brand Design
Drawing inspiration from founder Chip Cargas, our team proposed the name Tandem as a nod to Chip’s passion for cycling. The concept of a tandem bicycle symbolizes the partnership that happens between both Tandem and business owners as well as the business owners and their employees as they implement these programs at their companies. We introduced the addition of the word ‘Center’ in the name to convey a hub of resources that Tandem is also designed to be. With the visual of a bicycle and established guiding words in mind, we curated a mood board that was inspired by the simplicity and functionality of Nordic design, which conveyed the sense of ease the Tandem team envisioned bringing their clients. From there, our team crafted logo options to present, ultimately moving forward with an illustrative icon of a tandem bicycle with an all lowercase word mark for approachability. Paired with the logo is a color palette of calming Scandinavian blues with a pop of bright orange for contrast.
Brand Launch & Ongoing Marketing Strategy
With the visual brand established, we continued to partner with their Board to strategize on the Tandem launch. We started by implementing our brand guidelines on a microsite design while establishing key social media channels to aid in the launch announcement. We partnered with local vendors to host a launch party, which introduced the concept of Tandem as well as their new Executive Director, Drew Mousetis, to a network of key business owners in the Central Pennsylvania region.
After the party, our team empowered the Executive Director with a marketing roadmap for the remainder of the calendar year, along with a bundle of design assets to use as he began connecting with potential clients and key partners.The goal of the initial marketing strategy was the brand establishment and awareness. As the nonprofit neared its first anniversary, our team continued to support it with strategic design pieces and a new annual roadmap that included web design, video, and email marketing. As the Fig Industries team maintains our marketing partnership with Tandem, we are grateful to lend our strategic expertise to aid in their growth as they build an ownership mindset into the culture of companies both regionally and nationally for the bene it of the business, employees, and the community.