Stevens & Tate Marketing Creates Buzz For IFRA’s 90th Anniversary
Lombard, Ill. (PRWEB) July 13, 2015 -- The Illinois Food Retailers Association (IFRA) kicked off its 90th year of service by unveiling a new tagline and anniversary logo created by Stevens & Tate Marketing.
Founded in 1925, IFRA is a non-profit trade association dedicated to the profitability and growth of locally owned and owner-operated retail food stores and the suppliers that serve them. The organization strives to strengthen links to the food industry while providing members with essential and timely information about general interest topics and legislative issues.
IFRA retained Stevens & Tate, a Chicago advertising and marketing agency, to create a logo and slogan that not only represents the association’s history and mission but also engages today’s target audience—attracting new members and encouraging current members to participate in programs and events.
“As a Chicago advertising and marketing agency that has worked with multiple grocers, retailers and food companies, we recognize IFRA’s importance in Illinois,” said Dan Gartlan, Stevens & Tate president. “We’re experiencing a resurgence of independent grocers in the state as retailers face new challenges and changes daily.”
To respond to the dynamic nature of the local grocery landscape, Stevens & Tate knew it was essential to position the association as a leader for today. The agency crafted a simple, memorable tagline—connect, learn, advance—to convey IFRA’s benefits clearly in its messaging. The action-oriented words imply forward motion and positive change, and reflect the organization’s main objectives.
“These three words epitomize what’s at the heart of our association,” said Brian Jordan, IFRA president. “We’re a conduit for building new relationships and strengthening existing ones. We offer training and educational programs. And we represent the industry regarding legislative issues. Everything we do has the goal of empowering our members to advance their businesses.”
With all the choices people have for food purchases, it is important that independent retailers have an association they can count on, he continued. IFRA is as relevant today as it was nearly a century ago. And its image needs to reflect that.
“We have worked with Stevens & Tate on past projects and we turned to the agency again for our 90th anniversary because we trust their abilities,” said Jordan. “The team not only has a solid understanding of the grocery and retail industries, but brings knowledge from multiple disciplines to identify what our brand is and where it needs to go.”
“We believe in the power of a brand, not just at the retail level but also for associations such as IFRA,” said Gartlan. “The current logo has represented IFRA for many years; however, it now needs to be presented in a modern way.”
The 90-year emblem complements, but does not replace, the IFRA logo—allowing for the use of the new slogan and existing logo together after the anniversary passes. Combined, the look is fresh and contemporary yet retains the recognition established with membership.
IFRA’s core members include grocers and food retailers along with their suppliers. Some of the benefits the association provides its members are government and labor relations; educational courses, certifications and scholarships; group insurance; energy-savings plans; and coupon, credit card processing and data security programs. Each year the association hosts an annual conference to bring members together for a few days of learning and networking. This year’s conference will be held October 7 and 8 at Drury Lane in west suburban Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois.
Stevens & Tate is a full-service Chicago advertising and marketing agency offering award-winning, on-strategy creative; integrated message development; Internet and digital advertising; and cost-effective media planning and execution. Stevens & Tate creates focused, targeted solutions for its clients in the food/grocery, retail, senior living, real estate, healthcare, business-to-business, travel/tourism, and non-profit industries. To learn more about Stevens & Tate’s services or work, visit the company’s website at http://www.stevens-tate.com or call (630) 627-5200.
Debbie Szwast, Stevens & Tate Marketing, http://www.stevens-tate.com/, +1 (630) 627-5200, [email protected]
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