SAA | EVI Visual Identity and Logo

When real estate development firm SA&A and investment firm EVI were looking to combine their companies and rebrand into one cohesive identity, they came to Studio Simpatico for their visual identity, website, and print collateral.

David Alexander of SA&A and Ernst Valery of EVI have been working together for decades, doing business together as two separate entities. The nature of the relationship had been a partnership for years, but clients and colleagues were confused by the different entities. It was finally time for them to join as one name and brand: SAA | EVI. They came to us in early 2017 to create a new visual identity to represent the merged company, and a website to share information about the company and current/past projects. In addition to defining the brand and digital presence, they were looking for a partner to provide ongoing support for needed collateral (business cards, digital brochures, email templates, etc.)

During our discovery process, we learned about the principals’ shared commitment to affordable housing. For the creative team, this brought to mind an old fable of Aesop’s in which a man is, with no effort at all, able to break a single stick. However, when a collection of sticks are woven together, he is no longer able to break them. We used this story as a metaphor to guide the creation of a logo: a wreath glyph that represents that in unity, communities are stronger together.