AG Insurance banner

Fresh start for AG Insurance

Reviving an iconic brand
AG Insurance Building Brussels

Established in 1824 as Compagnie d'Assurances Générales, AG Insurance has existed in the Belgian financial landscape for two centuries.

Following a series of acquisitions in the nineties, it transforms into Fortis Group. AG Insurance became one of the companies under this new holding, first turning into Fortis AG, then Fortis Insurance Belgium. When the Group dissolved after Fortis Bank's bankruptcy in 2008, the insurance company was in big need of a new beginning. 

We worked in a sensitive context of a financial and trust crisis towards the Fortis brand but capitalised on the sustained good reputation of AG Insurance acquired through the years. Additionally, we fully updated the brand design to reflect its equity as a historical brand in the modern era.

Continue reading to discover the process behind this case.

AG logo

Approach and methodology

The population’s general mistrust towards the Fortis holding started to dangerously rub off on its insurance company that was not a part of the initial financial crisis, nor a part of the Group after the external buyout of the Fortis Bank.

Saving the Fortis Insurance Belgium’s reputation became our mission. Together with the client, we agreed that a new name and a new visual identity were necessary to get off to a fresh start. To make an informed decision, we verified our gut feeling with data.

We first conducted Expert Interviews inside the organisation with stakeholders at different levels. We discovered an overall nostalgic feeling for the times when the company still bore the AG name: a proof that the old brand’s equity was potentially still strong. With the help of external partners who conducted the market research, we confirmed that the general audience also shared this sentiment: if Fortis' reputation was tarnished, AG's remained untouched. We decided to follow this direction and bring AG Insurance back.

AG Insurance logo construction
AG Insurance Billboard

  

Contemporary heritage brand

In addition to reviving the heritage brand name, we decided to support this bold strategic move with a new look and feel. We didn't necessarily want to give the brand a full make-over. Instead, we intended to bring back its historical status in an updated way. Thanks to its new Corporate Identity, AG Insurance became a dynamic brand that evokes trust and liveliness at the same time.

Rolled out across touchpoints (from pens to posters to digital channels), this renewed, contemporary identity was a perfect beginning of AG's brand new era. All in all, with Brand Change and Creation, we helped AG Insurance restore its clients' faith, an extremely valuable currency in the insurance industry.