Read how I helped SaltSep to reinvent their brand identity whilst honouring their heritage.
When I first started working with Dan, the Technical & Commercial Director at Salt Separation Services, he clearly had a deep respect for what the business had built & the legacy he’d inherited from his Father who was one of it’s original founders.
This wasn’t just a company that had been around for decades – it was a family business. The brand meant something. To Dan, to the team, and to customers who had known it for years. Changing it felt big, not because it was difficult, but because it mattered.
And that’s often the case with long-established businesses.
Nothing is broken.
The reputation is solid.
People care.
But the market has moved. Expectations have shifted. And staying exactly as you are starts to quietly limit what the business can become next.
The real work here wasn’t “rebranding” – stick a new badge on it and calling a spade a spade – it was redefining.
Why change branding now?
The team understood that first impressions count. How new customers don’t have the context that long-standing ones do. And how holding onto familiar visuals and names can unintentionally signal that the business hasn’t moved with the times – even when the service absolutely has.
The goal wasn’t to erase the past.
It was to stop being defined by it.
What I did
Alongside the leaders of the business, I facilitated a session in which we discussed what the business had always stood for, what it wanted for the future, and we let those values guide what evolved.
I created concepts, using the original purple that the brand had become known for, but updating the font to something that pertains to the businesses technical nature, with a (very) subtle nod to water…
What evolved was something more impactful that made a statement, whilst not causing upheaval to the brand identity of the website and other assets that I had previously created.
How SaltSep handled their rebrand
SaltSep were very mindful of the wider business and brought team members into the conversation in early days before communicating to the wider business. Employees were given the chance to have an input but were also given an explanation as to why the change mattered and why it protected the future of the business.
The change was framed as care for the future, not criticism of the past. Modernising wasn’t about saying the old way was wrong. It was about making sure the business stayed relevant, respected and competitive for the next generation.
And most importantly, they moved carefully. No shock factor. No unnecessary disruption. Just thoughtful, considered change that felt right.
The launch
The launch of the new logo was given suitable fanfare at their premises in Rochdale, inviting one of the founders and past logo designer to mark the occasion and the unveiling. All team members were given a bag of goodies with merchandise inside that was carefully and meticulously organised by their Marketing Exec, Cerys Shackleton-Waller.
If you’re considering reinventing your brand identity
If you’re running a long-standing business and quietly wondering whether it’s time for your branding to evolve, but you’re worried about losing what makes it yours, you’re not alone.
The right kind of support doesn’t come in telling you what to throw away. It comes from understanding what needs protecting – and helping you carry that forward in a way that still works.
That’s the work I do.
If you’re thinking about a rebrand, modernisation, or the next chapter and want to approach it with care, clarity and respect for what you’ve built, let’s have a conversation.
Sometimes the hardest part isn’t deciding whether to change – it’s knowing how to do it without losing yourself along the way.
