New Restoration Brand Built to Compete Against National Players

As one of the fastest-growing prvately held commerical and residential restoration businesses in the US, KUSTOM approached Finch Brands looking to prepare for its next wave of profitable growth.

Having acquired a portfolio of regional businesses – with more to come – KUSTOM needed a strategy to manage brand equities/transitions and create a long-term approach to maximize enterprise value.

Furthermore, KUSTOM needed to strengthen its strategic and aesthetic brand foundation to enable the company to compete and win on a national basis with commercial accounts.

We constructed a flexible Brand Equity Assessment System and established guardrails for KUSTOM to evaluate the equity of each acquisition, to determine the appropriate brand transition cadence.

After identifying the gaurdrails, we set out to develop an M&A brand architecture strategy, an integration plan, launch suite, and KUSTOM brand position poised for national competition. 

We started with integrating previous acquisitions and building a model for future M&A integration – we worked closely with corporate and acquired company leadership to build a migration strategy for acquisitions, so that the KUSTOM name could be (gradually and deliberately) introduced.

Leveraging stakeholder research, brand strategy, and design, we built out the KUSTOM brand ideology, highlighting the company’s partnership style and general urgency under the established core idea of ‘Trust That Builds.’

The result was a corporate brand ready to compete against big national players and regional operators alike. Furthermore, KUSTOM now has a simple, compelling brand integration approach to ensure future acquisitions are approached carefully yet decisively. KUSTOM continues to grow rapidly and now has 33 locations. 

"As KUSTOM grew by acquisition, we needed a partner to help us build and execute a model for how to successfully integrate acquired brands. Not only did Finch Brands accomplish this in ways that strengthened KUSTOM, but they also helped prepare our brand to compete on a national level. We were impressed by their energy level and the quality of their work. They truly get M&A – and all the emotional and practical considerations that go along with it.?" - Andy Zavodney, Chairman & CEO, KUSTOM