How is it possible to combine the origin and future of two companies in one design? Due to the merger of the companies Evangelischer Johannesstift and Paul Gerhardt Diakonie to the umbrella brand Johannesstift Diakonie, the new brand needs a new innovative presence. In the process, the christian background of both companies has to be taken into account while linking it to a modern brand design. For the Johannesstift Diakonie, the dan pearlman brand architecture developed a coherent corporate design which contrasts the competitive environment and meets the modern aspirations of the umbrella brand.
Two companies, numerous medical and social offers, one holistic brand presence: Since 1858, the Evangelischer Johannesstift which was founded by Johann Hinrich Wichern, has offered living arrangements and care for individuals with impairments and for refugees of all age groups. With the in-patient and out-patient service offers of the Paul Gerhardt Diakonie in the areas of medicine, care, prevention, rehabilitation and palliative treatment, an extensive medical treatment and care spectrum emerges. The union of the Evangelischer Johannesstift and the Paul Gerhardt Diakonie brought the challenge of turning multiple company logos into a single corporate design.
The logo of the Paul Gerhardt Diakonie was used as the base for the new brand logo. The shape is based on the fish symbol, a traditional christian symbol. The designer reduced the existing logo to a base line and turned it 180 degrees. For the final result, the fish is turned upward to symbolize a positive and ascending feeling. By interrupting the line in two spots, the logo includes not only the fish but also the greek cross. It emphasizes the reference to Christianity and provides the logo with a dash of modernity. For the next step, new company colors were set. A new color spectrum emerged through the combination of the Diakonie’s previous shades of green and the Johannesstift’s berry color scheme. Now, a forest green acts as the primary color which is used for the supersign and wordmark. To complement the green, the secondary colors blue and berry were introduced. From now on, every facility of the merged companies will use the same combination of: the new logo, the name of the facility in one of the secondary colors and the wordmark “Johannesstift Diakonie” in forest green.
“The Corporate Design ensures brand recognition and serves as a form of orientation for our patients, residents, customers and guests. Although there is a variety of offers and facilities, the coherent design elements signal that in this facility you can count on professional, trustworthy and attentive care at a socially committed company. These four values have shaped our daily work until now and will do so in the future.” says Andreas Mörsberger, spokesperson of the Johannesstift Diakonie board.
The dan pearlman Markenarchitektur developed the corporate design as well as a variety of usage examples: for business cards or analogue signage to mention two. The style guide which was developed simultaneously contains suggestions regarding the employment of the logos in the company brochures and the combination of images, text and colors. Overall, the fresh, modern design stands out from the logos of competing companies. At the same time, it does not lose sight of its traditional roots – a successful bridging between origin and future.
