Blue Ridge Electric Unveils A New Symbol For A Growing Cooperative
For Immediate Release
Contact: Renee Whitener, Director of Corporate Communications, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation, (828) 758-2383 ext. 3213; Pager:1-800-471-1323; or E-mail: Renee Whitener
Lenoir, North Carolina (1:00 AM, EST March 31, 2000) —To reflect a growing cooperative offering expanding energy services and products, Blue Ridge Electric unveiled today a new symbol to identify the member-owned electric utility.
While the new symbol, or logo, retains the cooperative name Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation, the logo is a fresh, colorful symbol to represent all that the cooperative offers—now and in the future—through the electric cooperative and its propane, heating fuels and commercial gasoline subsidiary. The most striking feature of the logo is the red and black “energy icon” that replaces the green “ball” used by electric cooperatives for over a decade. The new icon uses red to represent energy, with the black “swoosh” giving the appearance of movement into the future. The blue color in the logo coordinates with the name of the cooperative.
The cooperative’s logo looks the same as the one used by its subsidiary, Blue Ridge Energies, except that the name of each company distinguishes the two logos. The Blue Ridge Electric logo also retains the Touchstone Energy designation, which signifies that the cooperative is part of a national alliance of more than 560 member-owned electric cooperatives.
“Our logo change was effected to represent a unified, more comprehensive energy company,” said Doug Johnson, chief executive officer, who unveiled the new logo during a Friday news conference at the cooperative’s corporate office in Lenoir. A video on large screen televisions was used to help announce the new logo, and news conference attendees were first to see the new corporate office sign and a newly marked line truck.
“The new logo helps communicate to the communities we serve that we’re growing to meet their needs with expanded energy options, and we’re getting ready for customer choice so that there’s no doubt that Blue Ridge is the choice,” said Johnson.
“Our cooperative has come a long way since 1936,” he continued. “Blue Ridge Electric wouldn’t be where it is today without the hard work and dedication of the fine people who helped build and develop this cooperative.
“Now it’s time to move into a new era. The summer of 2006 has been recommended as the date for deregulation in North Carolina, and Blue Ridge Electric is preparing in many different ways to operate successfully as a cooperative in a new marketplace,” Johnson said. “As much as we like to think everyone knows who Blue Ridge Electric is and the benefits of being served by a cooperative, research tell us that people—even cooperative members—don’t always know what a cooperative is or the benefits they bring to the communities they serve,” he added. “Blue Ridge Electric’s new logo is a step in communicating our cooperative message more broadly and more effectively.
“Through the new logo and other communications efforts, we’re also expressing that Blue Ridge Electric intends to fulfill its mission of providing affordable electricity and other energy and utility services to help build the region we all call home,” he added.
Johnson emphasized that while Blue Ridge Electric is adopting a new logo, the change doesn’t mean that the cooperative is abandoning its cooperative status.
“We believe that having a locally based, member-owned, not-for-profit electric utility is desired and valued more than ever by consumers,” Johnson said. “We care about the communities we serve because the people in them aren’t just our customers, they’re our neighbors. This is where we all live, work and raise our families.”
Communications the cooperative is using to announce the new logo and its message for the future includes a new web site at www.blueridgeemc.com, an advertising campaign, a newly designed member newsletter, and the video featured during the news conference. In addition, members will soon begin seeing vehicles marked with the new logo and line technicians in new blue and tan uniforms bearing the new logo. Major outdoor signage is being erected Friday and throughout the following week.
Blue Ridge Electric is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperative serving some 60,000 members from offices in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe and Alleghany counties. The cooperative also serves parts of Wilkes and Alexander counties. Its subsidiary company, Blue Ridge Energies, provides propane, heating fuels and commercial gasoline from offices in Lenoir, Morganton, Boone and West Jefferson. Blue Ridge Energies also features appliance showrooms in Lenoir and Morganton.
