CRDN REVEALS NEW LOGO, UNVEILS NEW APP AND WEBSITE

BERKLEY, Mich., May 2012 — CRDN, an international organization of textile restoration experts serving the insurance industry, has introduced a new corporate brand image, along with publicly launching its redesigned website and new mobile phone app.

CRDN has officially adopted its common-use acronym as the company’s primary brand identity, announced CRDN CEO Wayne Wudyka. In conjunction, CRDN has revealed a new corporate logo, which borrows graphic elements from the logo in use since 2001, and has deployed a new company descriptor: “The Textile Experts.”

Historically, CRDN had spelled out “Certified Restoration Drycleaning Network” in their logo and all marketing materials, but took the occasion of the company’s 10th anniversary to re-examine its identity and market position. CRDN is the oldest and largest franchise network of textile restoration operators, having built the first network of its kind in 2001 and creating the category it now leads.

The announcement follows months of exhaustive market research and planning, during which CRDN surveyed and interviewed customers (homeowners), franchise partners, insurance adjusters, agents, insurance executives, third-party administrators, restoration contractors and employees to obtain opinions, feedback and intelligence on the company’s leading market position.

In addition to the new logo and descriptor, CRDN introduced its new company tagline: “Respond. Restore. Resume.” The tagline captures the full lifecycle of a CRDN engagement, from 24-hour response services to best-in-class restoration professionals, processes and technology—and finally to the company’s mission of getting the homeowner back to normalcy as quickly and pleasantly as possible.

“The research confirmed for us that we have built considerable equity in the CRDN brand over the past decade, so there was no need for a wholesale reinvention,” Wudyka said. “That being said, most of our external and internal audiences refer to us as CRDN already, and at the same time, the use of the word ‘drycleaning’ in our brand name was too restrictive and not representative of the full breadth of services we provide. We are confident that ‘The Textile Experts’ more accurately captures our brand position. So this move was more of an evolution than a revolution, which the data dictated course on.

“The tagline itself, underscored with a graphical smile, communicates our mission to return the smiles to people’s faces,” Wudyka added.

To roll out the new brand image, descriptor and tagline, CRDN has launched an all new website and will gradually implement the brand evolution over a period of several months, with everything from marketing materials and advertising to the graphics on their fleet of vehicles changing over in due course. “Most things will be immediate; others will phase in,” Wudyka noted.

The website now offers new technology as well: online claims assignment, a franchise locator tool and customized pages for each of its locations in the U.S., Canada and U.K.; a virtual tour of CRDN’s facilities and technology; and specified areas of content tailored to each of its audiences—homeowners, adjusters, agents and contractors.

One completely new tool for CRDN brand engagement is the company’s new mobile app, CRDN Mobile. Available on both iPhone and Android phones, the app provides adjusters, agents and contractors instant access to an intuitive interface that will allow them to submit textile restoration claims, upload photos and data, easily track claims status (for one or multiple claims), and directly message CRDN professionals via phone, email or text message.

CRDN chose the occasion of the company’s international convention to first internally launch all of the changes just prior to the public launch, effective immediately. This year’s convention marks the 10th anniversary of CRDN and was the largest in the company’s history, hosted in Bonita Springs, Fla. This year’s convention was appropriately themed, A Decade of Success Powering Our Future.

“We created this category over a decade ago,” Wudyka added. “Now is the perfect time to reflect on the past, but more so to look ahead to the next ten years and beyond. We shared these exciting changes with our network first, but now we are proud to unveil our new brand position and industry-leading technology to the world as we power up to our next decade of success.”

CRDN conducted a nationwide search to ultimately retain one of the nation’s leading providers of brand strategy consulting and branding services, Identity, an integrated public relations firm in Bingham Farms, Mich. Identity conducted a six-month discovery, market study, audience analysis and brand audit prior to working with CRDN to implement and deploy the company’s new brand identity and marketing materials.

About CRDN:

CRDN is an international organization of experienced, highly trained textile restoration experts who specialize in insurance restoration laundry and drycleaning services for all types of loss. Adept at restoring textiles damaged by fire, smoke, water or exposure to mold and other contaminants, CRDN members offer an effective, efficient and proven solution for insurance professionals seeking to reduce costs and improve margins while closing claims quickly. CRDN currently operates in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. The organization’s website is www.CRDN.com and claims assignment can be made across Canada by calling 1-866-897-CRDN (2736).