What's in a name : The HIU brand story

The short answer - in our case, a great deal.

This is a question we were faced with as we considered a refreshed image and renewed looking brand image to represent HIU. 

With just under 10 years to our name we thought it was time to renew our commitment to you., our valued broker partners, to our long standing clients, to the insurance underwriting industry and, importantly, to our chosen niche target sector - the Tourism and Hospitality industries.

As part of this renewed commitment we needed a fresher, more modern look.

When considering our new image the first realisation was that a brand identity is the culmination of a creative designer artistically using the magic of a graphics software programme.

But that would simply produce a colourful picture or bold icon.

A brand, however, is so much more than a picture - it is a message, a symbol, an inspiration. It reflects all we stand for and what we represent. It is a "call to arms" for the people of our company to stand and deliver on the promises and commitments we make to our partners and the industry we serve.

The brand represents all we have built over the past 10 years and all we still aim to build over the next 10 years, and beyond.

It represents a message with which we and our partners and clients can identify. In our case, it represents - Innovation, Quality, Commitment, Service, Value and Passion.

You may be forgiven for wondering how on earth we managed to find a symbol to represent all these things? Not easily

But with some careful consideration and help from our great design company we think we got it right.

This is the story of our new look brand image and corporate profile:

We have worked very hard at creating a reputation in the market that we can be proud of. We wanted to be sure that our stakeholders would recognise that the core values that made this possible will always be our first priority.

That is why we have retained the acronym : HIU - it represents continuity.But, the font and style are newer and fresher with a modern contemporary feel reflecting where we are today in relation to keeping pace with the dynamic industry we serve;

The letters are more distinctive and bolder signifying our growth as a company and individuals.

Broader lettering also conveys stability and security and reflects a respect from within of what we have built over time;

The font and style are designed and not selected from a standard template making them as unique as the service we offer and value we add;

The lean of the letters indicate our focus forward to the future as we commit to our partners and industries we serve to fulfil our promises and objectives of ensuring their sustainability by insuring their interests;

For those few who have not yet heard of us HIU wouldnt tell them that we are the foremost Hospitality Industry Underwriters which is why we have added this as a descriptor at the foot of the logo.

Now any good structure needs a solid foundation on which to stand. Any company is a secure as its base.

This is why there is a solid base encasing 5 golden stars was selected as the platform for our company name. The base indicates a solid foundation built on previous experience, integrity and business values;

Still today, stars are an icon of quality. Both locally and internationally we grade our establishments with the help of stars. The 5 stars in our logo are synonymous with quality and service. Two principles common to both our business and the Hospitality and Tourism industries around the world;

The colouration using, albeit a slightly different, blue and gold are retained from our previous logo, once again symbolising the continuity and consistency within our company as we look forward;

Finally, we have extended our logo to state our position in the market - Leaders in Tourism and Hospitality a status we feel we continuously achieve and which research has shown us is confirmed from various wide ranging industry sources. This is also reflective of the partners we share and many acclaimed risks we underwrite. We realise that it is a bold statement to make and look forward to always striving to maintain this position for the benefit of our broker partners and many thousands of clients.

Now, with that out of the way - we ask you to keep an eye out in the various trade and industry publications for our adverts and we invite any comments or suggestions you may have.

In the meantime we will be hard at work innovating, servicing and creating value for you, our valued partners.