Bechtle AG is Germany’s largest IT system house and is a well-established player in the digital industry with more than 15,000 employees, a turnover of 6.4 billion euros, and more than a hundred locations in fourteen countries to ensure personal proximity to customers. In order to better anchor its image as a future-first IT partner in the marketplace, Bechtle decided to revamp its brand image for the first time in its 40-year history, and brought the brand and design agency Peter Schmidt Group on board.
Bechtle’s new visual identity has been molded to the company’s brand identity, with zukunftsstark (roughly “future-first”) at its core, along with the attributes connected, entrepreneurial, and experienced. A circle composed of two sections forms the new logo, symbolizing strong connections fusing into a single entity that channels a world of facets such as experience and future, people and technology, or empathy and competence. These pairs combine to create a strong, cohesive unit.
The rhombus in the center of the circle echoes the original logo and stands for openness to the future. Its 19-degree slant is reflected throughout the entire corporate design, for example in the layout system, icons and illustrations, as well as in the new, proprietary font called Bechtle Pro. The company name now appears alongside the symbol rather than within it, and is no longer capitalized, giving the wordmark a unique and more memorable appeal.
The new color palette reflects the history of the company, dating back to its founding in 1983. The familiar Experience Green sets Bechtle apart in the IT industry and will continue to play a leading role in the future, complemented by two new, vibrant shades: Progressive Green and Future Green. Additional accent colors were selected to comply with the accessibility requirements for corporate websites that will come into effect in 2025, making it easier for visually impaired users to consume digital content. “We took a systematic, digital-first approach to designing the brand appearance,” explained creative director Ulrich Aldinger. “The result is an unmistakable digital impression and a visualization of the very essence of Bechtle – a progressive, successful, digital enterprise that aspires to shape the future with IT.”
“The new corporate design underscores our ambition of establishing Bechtle as a future-first IT partner in Europe as well as a modern employer. We’re creating a very recognizable visual context that clearly distinguishes us from our competition. It’s the perfect canvas that allows us to heighten awareness of our brand and continue to bolster our positive image,” said Dr. Thomas Olemotz, CEO of Bechtle AG.
The new corporate design will initially be introduced across all digital channels, then from 2025 successively at all of the Bechtle group’s physical locations throughout Europe.
CREDIT
- Agency/Creative: Peter Schmidt Group
- Article Title: New Visual Identity for Bechtle, One of Europe’s Leading IT Businesses
- Organisation/Entity: Agency
- Project Type: Identity
- Project Status: Published
- Agency/Creative Country: Germany
- Agency/Creative City: Hamburg
- Market Region: Europe
- Project Deliverables: Brand Identity
- Industry: Technology
- Keywords: branding, rebranding, design, brand design, it services, it, computing, logo design
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Credits:
Creative Director: Ulrich Aldinger
Design Director: David Driscoll