Reinventing a legacy

Insight

Reclaiming the joy and comfort of water.

For over 80 years, Culligan has pioneered how water is filtered in the USA and worldwide. After over six years of rapid expansion, growing organically and inorganically by over 500%, Culligan required a new identity to match its global presence.

Building Culligan’s new and differentiated identity began with exploring the cultural and competitive landscape. Despite water being Earth’s most essential and powerful force, it had lost its extraordinariness. From a consumer perspective, trust in water quality is declining and water is increasingly seen as an uncertain resource. Water is portrayed in strictly clinical, transactional terms in the competitive landscape with little differentiation between companies. Together, this painted a mechanical picture of water as a problem to be solved, something precarious and flawed, rather than the life-giving resource it has always been.

Idea

Anyone can get the water they love.

The opportunity for Culligan to lead the way rose by bringing back the idea of water as a positive human experience. AKQA created a united brand house that shifts the narrative with the vision of providing clean water wherever people are, making water the hero and highlighting the emotional relationship to water. A manifesto evolved, articulating the core pillars that make Culligan unique and a leader in the industry: relentless sustainability, human-centred service, proven science and life-enhancing water.

AKQA designed a flexible system to represent every facet of Culligan’s ecosystem while highlighting its role as a steward for people and the planet. The system leverages a unique colour palette that is both energising and polished, with eye-catching accents designed to elevate Culligan from its competitors. 3D renders highlight product innovations, showcasing fundamental line illustrations to show how the products work and infographics to spotlight Culligan’s significant impact on sustainability practices.

Innovating beyond a static document, AKQA formalised Culligan’s guidelines as a digital experience that employees can access online and can continuously evolve in the future.

Impact

Transforming water to change the world.

The launch was celebrated with an anthem video that brings the new look and feel to life while boldly stating who Culligan is today and what it stands for as a united company. Culligan can serve people and the planet through its products by transforming water and, ultimately, the world.

All facets of the business worldwide were refreshed with the new design, including the corporate website experience and Culligan.com.

In a world where water is increasingly precious, Culligan showcases its leadership by designing the future of the world’s water.