Events & Signature Programs The Brand Evolution BERKS FAMILY BUSINESS ALLIANCE

By Natasha Halulakos, Marketing Specialist Intern, GRCA

The Berks Family Business Alliance (FBA) is revitalizing its brand image. Founded in 2014, FBA is a signature program of the Greater Reading Chamber Alliance (GRCA). For nearly a decade, FBA has been helping local family-owned businesses learn, cultivate and grow.

Now, in preparation for its 10th anniversary, FBA is evolving its brand to support its growth goals and expand its business expertise across the community. Marking an exciting new chapter, FBA’s revamp includes refreshed branding across all program materials and a refined mission statement to expand membership beyond family-owned businesses.

Refining the FBA Brand

To align with its current growth strategy, the program has recently modernized its mission statement and promotional materials.

As the organization continues to evolve, FBA’s original mission to provide resources and support for family businesses has transitioned to include closely held businesses of all sizes. Extending membership to small and midsize businesses allows FBA to serve entrepreneurs and other non-family-owned businesses in the area that can benefit from the organization’s resources.

The organization also recently refined its brand logo. The design highlights the program’s three letter acronym in its signature brand color palette. To enhance brand awareness, six cohesive logos have also been created for each of FBA’s concentrated offerings from Peer Groups and exclusive events to Signature Events. These symbols now align with the program’s primary logo, cultivating synergy within the FBA brand.

Expanding Membership Beyond FamilyOwned Businesses

As the updated mission statement suggests, FBA’s brand evolution introduces its expansion into serving all small and midsize businesses in Berks County. This initiative propels the organization’s objective to serve more area business owners as it will now support small and midsize businesses that can benefit from its services. With this change, FBA is on track to experience major growth, preparing to serve more local businesses than ever before.

What FBA Offers

While FBA’s evolution includes a new brand image, the heart of the program remains unchanged. The organization continues to provide diverse programming and numerous interactive opportunities to local businesses. FBA’s new brand campaign aims to reflect the organization’s core purpose and highlight available resources that help prepare local businesses for success. Members can benefit from Peer Groups, workshops, signature events and networking functions designed to help family businesses and closely held businesses succeed.

Peer Groups enable business owners to collaborate with peers, share common problems and experiences and learn how to deal with challenges unique to entrepreneurship. FBA currently hosts five professionally facilitated Peer Groups. Meetings rotate from welcoming outside speakers on business topics to discussing issues occurring within their family businesses. In 2022, Berks FBA launched a Next[Gen] Peer Group aimed toward supporting the next generation of family business owners as they transition into leadership roles. Speaking on key topics like succession planning, marketing, risk management and financial performance, Peer Groups help business members learn to problem solve and address future concerns.

FBA also organizes various workshops and events to directly serve local business owner needs. It will host a series of workshops around “The 7 Principles of a Successful Family Business” led by speakers addressing topics like effective leadership, speaking with one voice, clarity of roles and accountability. Berks FBA will be partnering with the GRCA’s agricultural arm and resources to offer workshops catered to family farms and their unique needs. Likewise, signature events such as the annual Spring Symposium and Fall Forum offer business members the opportunity to learn from the experiences of successful entrepreneurs and local business leaders.

Looking Ahead

FBA’s rebranding will support the organization’s mission to offer effective resources and solutions to business owners in Berks County. FBA celebrates the 275+ family-owned business members it currently champions, while also seeking opportunities to support even more businesses in the area. With a cohesive brand redesign and refined mission, FBA is primed to support local business needs for decades to come. CQ