Rebranding a national icon

When Herman Friele, the 'abdicated king' of the Norwegian coffee industry, was planning his new business empire, Kind was given carte blanche to develop a communication strategy and brand vision for the new Friele Group.

The result is a dynamic visual identity inspired by the past, but with a keen eye on the future. In the same way, the company - which can trace its roots back to 1799 - aims to give the market 'a taste of excellence'.

When Dutch company DE Master Benders took over most of the shares in coffee producer Kaffehuset Friele, it changed the company's name. Jacobs Douwe Egberts Norway is the new name of this 210-year-old giant of the Norwegian coffee industry. The name includes the biggest coffee brands sold by the new company. Owner Herman Friele left the company but kept B. Friele og Sønner, a company that has been in his family since 1799.

Capable and innovative
Friele Foods is a commercial company that markets well-known Norwegian and foreign brands in the product categories fast food, ready meals, finger food, bread, cakes, fish and shellfish, game, vegetarian products, gluten-free products, fine food and a broad range of organic products. The company's principal strategy is to be a capable and innovative marketer of frozen produce with dry foodstuffs as a speciality. Friele Foods has a well-developed sales and marketing organisation, and it operates in the following market segments: groceries, catering, convenience stores and the health food market.

'Premium quality'
'For Norwegians, the name Friele is synonymous with premium quality. It has been a privilege to reposition a brand icon of Friele's size and importance. Our focus has been on preserving the company's history, while at the same time having a keen eye on the future and on Friele's focus on new markets. This is the start of a new era in the history of Norwegian business,' says Kind's CEO Tom Emil Olsen.

'Exceptionally satisfied'
Herman Friele, Chairman of the Board of the Friele Group, said: 'We wish to underline that we are exceptionally satisfied with our collaboration with Kind. We chose Kind as our adviser and branding partner in a branding process where our activities were positioned under the umbrella: the Friele Group. Here, we defined three activity areas:

– Friele Foods, which is responsible for our investments and activities in the Norwegian groceries and catering/convenience store market.

– Friele Eiendom, which comprises our commercial properties.

– Friele Capital, which manages our investments in the capital and finance market.

'We also wish to praise KIND for its good advice, its clear communication and, not least, the good humour they have brought to our collaboration.'