27.12.2022
Erste Group's new brand identity is monochrome, multicolour and digital first
- Corporate design fundamentally modernised
- Optimised, monochrome logo, new colours, new font
- Gradual roll-out across all markets starting in January 2023
Erste Group’s entire visual corporate identity will be thoroughly modernised and made fit for the future starting January 2023. Erste Bank and Sparkassen in Austria as well as all Erste markets in the CEE region will be given a fresh new look. The well-known Erste and Sparkassen logo will be optimised for digital media, a new uniform font and new colours will be introduced.
“A brand can only be successful in the long term if it stands for clear values and convictions – and lives up to them. This is what has set us apart since our founding more than 200 years ago. We put our clients at the heart of everything we do and interact with them as equals. Yet, it is also about making people experience this vision of ours, and that is precisely what our new Group-wide corporate design does”, explains Willi Cernko, CEO of Erste Group.
Simpler, faster, more intuitive
Erste Group's brand communication is based on the founding idea of the savings banks and follows a “purpose-driven” approach. At its core is the belief in people's abilities and potential as the most important prerequisite for personal growth, social prosperity, and a positive future. This attitude is now also reinforced by a new corporate appearance. Erste Group's corporate design has been thoroughly modernised and is taking a leap into the digital age.
“A brand is a consistent promise. A modern brand must do justice to a world that is undergoing constant change. Young generations have an intuitive ability to navigate the digital world. New digital media create new formats. Media consumption is becoming simpler, faster and more intuitive. Now is the right time to take a big leap forward with our corporate design. The brand will become even more accessible, flexible and future-oriented,” says Mario Stadler, Head of Group Brand Management & Communications at Erste Group, explaining the new brand design.
The optimised Erste logo will retain its distinctive and unmistakable character, but will be given a fresh coat of paint. By switching to a slimmer "S" and white monochrome as the default colour, the word mark and logo are harmonised and optimised for digital use. Combined with the eight new and accessible design colours, Erste Group’s look becomes fresher, more modern, and more approachable in the future. The multicolour approach also forms the bridge between Erste Group’s and the design of the online banking platform George. Inter is used as the new typeface, which is well suited for both analogue and digital use. The result is a corporate design that creates a consistent brand experience across all channels.
Gradual rollout
Erste Group's new corporate design will be rolled out gradually in all core markets from January 2023: Austria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia. In these markets, the new design will be used by the local banks as well as by the respective subsidiaries of the local banks. In the international home markets of the savings banks, where they are represented by their own subsidiaries, such as in Macedonia and Slovenia, the new corporate design will also be implemented. The strategic development of the new brand design was carried out in collaboration with Jung von Matt Brand Identity in Hamburg in cooperation with Jung von Matt Donau in Vienna.
Two Austrian branches are already featuring the new design: The Erste branch on Graben in Vienna and the Klosterneuburg branch.
Austria's strongest brand and top banking brand in Europe
Erste was named Austria’s strongest brand in the 2022 "Brand Finance" report. On an international level, Brand Finance ranked Erste as the strongest brand in Europe in the "Banking Brand" category. The report points to an improvement of Erste in the Brand Strength Index by 22.4 points - confirming a successful brand strategy.