Case Study: Rebranding Four Sub-Brands in Six Weeks
How we created four distinct brand identities that work together as a system, and shipped them all within the client's deadline.
The Brief
A mid-size consulting firm needed to rebrand and launch four distinct sub-brands within six weeks. Each sub-brand served a different market vertical, but they all needed to feel like part of the same family. The challenge: four separate brand identities that could launch simultaneously without looking like they were designed by different studios.
The Strategy
Instead of designing four independent brands, we created a master brand system first. This system had: a shared colour foundation (one master palette that each sub-brand pulled from), a unified typography hierarchy, a consistent logo geometry, and a modular icon system.
The Colour System
We developed 8 colours: a primary colour for each sub-brand (4 colours), two neutrals, one accent, and one error state. Sub-Brand A got a vibrant teal primary; Sub-Brand B got a sophisticated navy; Sub-Brand C got a warm rust; Sub-Brand D got a cool slate. But all four shared the same neutral palette and accent colour, which made them feel cohesive.
The Outcome
All four brands launched on time. The client reported zero rework requests. More importantly, the brands felt intentional — like they were designed as a system rather than four unrelated identities. Six months after launch, the client briefed us on building two additional sub-brands using the same framework, which we delivered in three weeks (half the original timeline).