The TaxAssist Rebrand by Bray Leino (formerly krow Group) for TaxAssist Accountants was named the winner of Excellence in Branding at the inaugural East Anglian Marketing Awards.
The award was sponsored by Brandland and presented to the team by Robert Jones of Brandland.
We spoke to Kelly Chick, Director of Group Brand & Marketing at TaxAssist, and the team at Bray Leino about the thinking, collaboration and impact behind the award-winning rebrand.
Q: Huge congratulations! What did winning Excellence in Branding mean to the team?
Kelly Chick, Director of Group Brand & Marketing, TaxAssist:
Winning Excellence in Branding was a proud moment for everyone involved. The rebrand represented extensive research, planning, development and implementation, and receiving external recognition for that work was incredibly rewarding.
What makes the award particularly meaningful is that our team delivered the project while continuing to support the day-to-day needs of a network of more than 400 offices, balancing a major transformation programme alongside the ongoing demands of the business.
It was a true team effort involving thousands of hours of work, collaboration across multiple departments, and a shared commitment to creating a brand that positions TaxAssist Accountants for the future.
The award is recognition of both the quality of the rebrand itself and the dedication of the people who brought it to life.
Q: What was the original challenge or opportunity behind the TaxAssist Accountants rebrand?
Kelly Chick, Director of Group Brand & Marketing, TaxAssist:
The business had evolved significantly since the previous brand identity was introduced. While TaxAssist Accountants had built strong recognition and trust over many years, there was an opportunity to create a more contemporary brand that better reflected the quality of our services, the professionalism of our network, and our ambitions for future growth.
We also needed a brand that worked effectively across digital channels, where an increasing number of customer interactions begin.
Q: What was the thinking behind the new brand, and how did you balance modernising it with retaining the recognition and trust built up over the years?
Bray Leino:
The objective was evolution rather than revolution. We wanted to modernise the brand while retaining the familiarity and trust that clients, franchisees and prospects associated with TaxAssist Accountants. We worked with The Krow Group, now Bray Leino, with extensive research.
The in-depth discovery process included digital listening, a YouGov survey and detailed market and competitor research. Bringing qualitative research together with data-driven, quantitative research helped build a complete picture of what people thought about the brand and their services; which was fascinating when compared to what they potentially needed but didn’t know TaxAssist could offer.
It became increasingly clear there was a gap there that needed closing. This research gave us the foundation for the new positioning and a very simple idea: ‘We can do more for you.’
From there, the identity was about evolution rather than revolution. We retained and refreshed TaxAssist’s established brand colours, protecting that important recognition on the high street, while introducing a broader complementary palette and a more modern typeface to create a fresher, more flexible, digital-first identity.
The ‘+’ became a key part of the system. Integrated into the logo and used as a standalone brand device, it provided a simple visual shorthand for ‘more’ – more services, more support, and more ways TaxAssist can help.
We also developed a signposting framework that made the wider range of services much easier to navigate. So, every element of the identity had a job to do; it wasn’t simply about making the brand look different.
Above: The Bray Leino team accepting the Excellence in Branding trophy.
Q: Was there a particular part of the rebrand that was especially challenging or rewarding?
Kelly Chick, Director of Group Brand & Marketing, TaxAssist:
One of the biggest challenges was implementing the new brand across a large franchise network while maintaining consistency and minimising disruption. The most rewarding aspect was seeing the brand come to life across hundreds of offices, digital platforms, marketing materials and customer communications. The positive response from franchisees and customers demonstrated that the new identity successfully balanced modernity with familiarity.
Q: How did you work collaboratively throughout the project?
Bray Leino:
Collaboration was fundamental from the outset. Our in-depth discovery process brought together TaxAssist’s marketing and leadership teams, franchisees, existing customers and prospects through stakeholder workshops, focus groups and one-to-one interviews.
The level of collaboration continued throughout the creative process. We tested the new look and feel with the same people before rollout, so decisions weren’t being made in an agency bubble. The end result was something we had built with TaxAssist and its audiences, rather than simply presented to them.
Q: What impact has the new brand had since its launch?
Kelly Chick, Director of Group Brand & Marketing, TaxAssist:
The rebrand has provided a stronger platform for future growth and innovation. It has enhanced the consistency of our customer experience, improved the effectiveness of our digital presence and strengthened perceptions of the business as a modern, professional accountancy and advisory brand.
Internally, it has also generated a renewed sense of pride and confidence across the network.
Importantly, we’ve been able to measure a positive commercial impact. Offices that adopted the new branding earlier have, on average, delivered stronger sales growth than those that were rebranded at a later date. While many factors contribute to business performance, this trend gives us confidence that the investment in the brand has helped strengthen customer appeal and support growth across the network.
Kelly’s Advice for entering awards
Focus on telling the complete story rather than simply showcasing the finished work. The best entries demonstrate the challenge, the thinking behind the solution, the collaboration involved and the measurable impact achieved.
Q: What do you think makes a genuinely great brand rather than simply a good-looking one?
Bray Leino:
The best brands make things clearer or easier. They change perceptions, create recognition and help people navigate an offer. And they work consistently, wherever someone encounters them, while also being flexible enough to allow the business to keep changing as they move forward.
That’s why it’s particularly rewarding that we get to keep working with TaxAssist to help them evolve the brand during a really exciting time for their business.
Of course, a great brand should also be distinctive, memorable and beautifully crafted, but those things need to be rooted in a clear understanding of the business, its audiences and what it is trying to achieve. TaxAssist is a good example of that.
The ‘+’ is a simple piece of design, but it encapsulates the strategic idea behind the whole project: there’s more to TaxAssist than you might think.
Q: What advice would you give to someone considering entering the EAMAs next year?
Kelly Chick, Director of Group Brand & Marketing, TaxAssist:
Focus on telling the complete story rather than simply showcasing the finished work. The best entries demonstrate the challenge, the thinking behind the solution, the collaboration involved and the measurable impact achieved.
Clear evidence of results and a strong narrative will always make an entry more compelling.
Q: Finally, what does it mean to see work created in East Anglia recognised at this level?
Kelly Chick, Director of Group Brand & Marketing, TaxAssist:
It’s a fantastic achievement and demonstrates the incredible talent that exists across East Anglia. Recognition through the EAMAs highlights the quality of work being produced in the region and shows that businesses and agencies here are delivering projects that can compete with the very best.
We’re proud that this intensive project has received this recognition and showcased the strength of the region’s creative and business community.
Why We’re Sharing This
A successful rebrand is about far more than creating a new visual identity. TaxAssist Accountants’ award-winning rebrand shows how research, strategy, collaboration and creative thinking can come together to evolve an established brand without losing the recognition and trust it has built over the years.
From the thinking behind the ‘+’ to the challenge of rolling out a new identity across more than 400 offices, this is a great example of how branding can have a purpose beyond aesthetics – helping a business communicate what it offers, connect with its audiences and create a stronger platform for future growth.
We’re sharing the story behind the rebrand to shine a light on the thinking and teamwork that went into an award-winning piece of work created right here in East Anglia.