Rebuilding Exchange
A Sturdy Brand for a Sustainable Enterprise
The Rebuilding Exchange began in 2008 as an experiment, a nonprofit storefront designed to create and test the market for reclaimed building materials—lumber and metal that would otherwise languish in a landfill, unloved, unused and gathering dust and rust until the end of days.
It didn't take long for the market to prove itself. In just a few years, the organization had a loyal following of lifelong champions for creative re-use as well as plenty of recent converts. On top of their bread-and-butter inventory of reclaimed materials, Rebuilding Exchange began offering a full line-up of hands-on, maker's workshops and a line of handcrafted goods. Soon enough, the organization became an independent social enterprise.
We were there for the ride, watching as the organization grew and expanded, all the while gradually developing the Rebuilding Exchange brand.
IDENTITY & BRANDING
We started with a few core elements, including a rustic logotype built using forms borrowed from items in your granddad’s toolshed.
As Rebuilding Exchange began adding more programs and offerings, we added new flexible details and design elements to the core identity. Now completed, the system is built on good bones — small, component parts that can be extracted and repurposed for different uses, like RX-Made, their in-house, branded product line.
Over the course of our collaboration, we’ve designed business cards, hang tags, brochures, note cards, gift certificates, bottle openers and more, at times even experimenting with literal branding, burning, stamping and etching the RX logo into different materials.
The finished identity has the worn-in feel of a well-used workshop. It draws in the textures and shapes of raw materials and handheld tools while paying homage to the sweat, love and elbow grease it takes to put them all together.
OUTDOOR SIGNAGE
The final piece to come together was the outdoor mural. There aren’t many companies out there that specialize in hand-painted, outdoor signage, but the ones that do it, do it right. We worked with Right Way Signs to complete the project and watched in awe as their pros meticulously and patiently recreated our work in massive scale. The finished sign is built to last, a true labor of love and lasting testament to the power and impact of handmade.
