Mobico Group
Repositioning a global transport provider.
If you grew up in the UK, National Express Group is likely to conjure up images of red, white and blue coaches driving down UK motorways. But since its inception in 1974, the business has transformed itself from being a UK-focused rail, coach and bus operator to being an international, multi-mode, mass transit operator operating in North America, continental Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. It currently operates a fleet of more than 27,000 vehicles globally with 80% of its revenue generated from businesses outside the UK.
National Express Group’s challenge was clear: its brand just wasn’t conveying the scale and ambition of its global business, and its name was adding to the confusion. Outside the UK, there was very little understanding of what ‘National Express’ meant or stood for – among prospective investors or the Group’s 46,200 employees. It needed a corporate brand that would unite, inspire and act as a positive halo across the entire operating business – a brand that would powerfully articulate its ambition to lead the modal shift from cars to passenger transportation and create a brighter, greener future for all.
SERVICES:
01. Naming
02. Visual identity
03. Website design
04. Activation and guidelines
Our work with Mobico Group
01. Naming
02. Visual identity
03. Website design
04. Activation and guidelines
National Express Group needed a name that would better represent its global business and the depth of its mobility offer – a name that wasn’t so evocative of the UK transport sector. ‘Mobico’, an abbreviation of ‘mobility company’, was chosen because of the powerful ‘mobility’ associations – being mobile is at the heart of its business strategy – as well as the strong audio pattern of ‘mo-bi-co’, with the vowels (o-i-o) accentuating softness and the ‘co’ accentuating hardness.
Our work with Mobico Group
01. Naming
02. Visual identity
03. Website design
04. Activation and guidelines
The brand’s new visual identity was built upon the idea of connections between people and places, positioning Mobico as an enabler, operating at the heart of the communities it serves. The logotype and visual identity feel interactive, innovative and diverse, and clearly support Mobico’s ambitions to shape a brighter, greener future for multi-modal transport.
The logo, the brand’s most important visual asset, was redesigned to symbolise connectivity, while new colours were inspired by both urban and rural environments. Foundational teal and grey are offset with bright green and orange, adding energy and positivity to the palette and symbolising Mobico’s commitment to a sustainable future.
A new graphic system was introduced to complement the symbol and logo itself, with simple, abstract shapes reminiscent of roads and streets used to reflect Mobico’s role in connecting people and places.
Our work with Mobico Group
01. Naming
02. Visual identity
03. Website design
04. Activation and guidelines
Mobico wanted to transform how it presented itself and knew that its website was a crucial channel for communicating with investors, employees, customers and the wider world. To support this ambition, we transformed its online presence from being one that focused solely on what it does and the industry it operates in to being one that represented what it stands for and the value it delivers people and society.
The new site was designed to better communicate the Mobico purpose – ‘to power the future of multi-modal mobility’ – and brand attributes, and to powerfully reinforce the value that the Group adds to its operating brands through its scale and pooled expertise.
Our work with Mobico Group
01. Naming
02. Visual identity
03. Website design
04. Activation and guidelines
The new brand was unveiled by Mobico CEO Ignacio Garat at the company’s 2023 AGM. It will be deployed globally over the remainder of 2023, supported by a comprehensive set of brand guidelines and assets. These cover everything from colour, typography and graphic language to photography and iconography.
