Rebranding an industry innovator with a design system and website as flexible as the company’s own solutions
Flexe uses technology and networks to solve the most challenging omnichannel logistics problems for the world’s largest retailers. They are an industry disrupter and leader, operating at a scale and breadth of capabilities far beyond that of any competitor, yet many still thought of them as just “the on-demand warehousing people.”
The old Flexe logo was a nod to their roots in warehousing. The new identity system more accurately positions them as the tech-forward industry leaders that they are.
Designing for the intersection of logistics and technology
During our discovery phase, we found that industry brands, as well as startups, all shared a similar look. To stand out, we needed to avoid tech tropes and embrace Flexe’s intelligence, expertise, and experience to more accurately represent who they are, what they do, and what makes them unique.
Analyzing the competitive landscape, we found many brands embracing blue and white palettes, irreverent illustration, and sans serif typography—common tropes within the tech startup world.
The Flexe brand launch video shows a man climbing into a semi-truck, overhead views of roads and intersections, and an x shape appears over those roads, mirroring the shape of an intersection, and the rest of the word Flexe shows up around the x filling out the logomark. We then see more scenes from the logistics world with thin, angled and curve linework animating in over the photos to show that the lines echo shapes and paths in the logistics environment.
The Flexe brand launch video. The “x” in the wordmark represents two industries coming together; the intersection of logistics and technology.
Inspired by technical diagrams, the linework conveys the idea of unique pathways and intersections.
The serif typeface and high-contrast, predominantly black and grey color palette telegraph intelligence and an analytical approach.
The Flexe color palette pulls from the physical world of logistics; grey metal, black tires, brown boxes, red exit signs.
A new brand embraced
To introduce the new brand to its employees, Flexe held a remote town hall with its then 250 employees across America. We helped them create a narrative around the brand and an accompanying video. The co-founder and CEO, Karl Siebrecht, along with its Chief Growth Officer, Adam Kapel, embraced the brand story and brought it to life for the team with a heartfelt presentation that ended with the simultaneous opening of hundreds of boxes revealing new Flexe-branded apparel, coffee tumblers, and more.
“The One Design team is collaborative, forward-thinking, and they’re true creative problem-solvers. The new Flexe brand is smart and differentiated. It represents the innovative solutions and services we provide to our enterprise customers every day.”
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Adam Kapel, Chief Growth Officer at Flexe
Bringing the future of logistics to life online
The new brand came to life on a website that embodies the defining characteristics of this dynamic, omnichannel logistics company—intelligent adaptability—in both its aesthetic design and functionality for the Flexe team.
A video showing what happens when you scroll through the new Flexe homepage. The Flexe logomark is large, then shrinks as you scroll down. A full-width video provides texture with an overhead shot of freeways underneath a headline that reads: Ominchannel logistics programs. Powered by Flexe. we see headlines, statistics, company features, leadership content, photography, news, and a final call to action, all in the new design system, all animating on screen in a smooth, elegant way.
Conveying thought-leadership and data were the primary goals of the website—a focus that drove design decisions and helps Flexe continue to lead the industry with pioneering ideas and insights.
The top section of a sub page of the website demonstrating the design system in black and white, with light linework animating on top of the page.
A close up of the top of the Flexe homepage showing the large logomark shrinking dynamically in the layout as the user scrolls down.
Insights content is displayed in greyscale, then becomes full color type and photography as the user hovers over the content.
Flexible components enable the Flexe team to highlight insights and data.
Using the new brand to continue to grow
The Flexe team loves the new brand. It’s differentiated, extensible, and much more illustrative of the logistics solutions and services Flexe delivers to its enterprise customers. Through our ongoing partnership, we continue to discover new design applications and visual communication tools to serve every stage of Flexe’s customer journey and external touchpoints. And we’re just getting started.
One Design Company
One Design Company is a research-driven design and development studio. For over a decade, we’ve explored the intersection of experience and technology—where powerful brands come to life. Want to learn more? Let’s chat.
