SUMMARY
EKE Rakennus is a Finnish family company that specializes in the construction of apartment buildings and small houses as well as entire residential areas in the capital region in Finland. EKE Rakennus’ mission is to create humane and insightful living environments where people feel well both physically and mentally. EKE Rakennus believes that people who feel well pass it along: they can continue to take care of the well-being of other people, animals and nature. We helped the company to create a brand strategy and future-oriented housing concepts to maintain their thought leadership for the next decade.
Services
- Long table analysis of the operational environment
- End-user insight
- Brand strategy
- Creative concepts for socially sustainable living
Challenge
EKE Rakennus has historically been a pioneer in the construction industry, and it wants to continue being one in the future. The company wanted to create a brand strategy that supports this goal. They also wanted to create housing concepts that support the implementation of the strategy. We looked for answers to the following questions in our brand strategy and conceptualization work:
- What are the most essential things in housing in the period of 2020-2030?
- Why does the company exist?
- What are the qualities of the most humane and insightful living environments?
Housing is in transition. Today people increasingly want housing that is built around services. A sense of community is paramount. The now 60-year-old EKE realized already decades ago the importance of community for the quality of living, and one of its flagship destinations, the large and much praised Sundsberg, a residential area located in Kirkkonummi, is the fruit of this thinking.
The reputation of a trailblazer requires continuous nurturing, and that is why EKE wanted to make a significant investment in its brand strategy work as well as in the conceptualization work of future housing solutions.
Co-founders had the pleasure of acting as EKE’s partner in both phases of this work.
Process
As is often the case with assignments of this type, we first ensured through a joint workshop and in-depth interviews that the entire management team of EKE Rakennus was committed to the strategy work.
The strategy work was preceded by a so-called “long table analysis”, through which we identified EKE’s strengths and weaknesses in relation to competitors and customer needs. With the help of the long table analysis, we also gained an understanding of the company’s history and legacy. We combined this information with the information produced by the focus group interviews we conducted among consumers and housing experts.
The purpose of the brand strategy is to ensure that the brand is truly relevant to carefully selected target groups and that the brand stands out in the market. After completing the strategy work together with the EKE team, we moved on to create strategy-supporting concepts for future housing needs.
Outcome
As a result of the cooperation, EKE Rakennus now has a brand strategy that is based on the very purpose of its existence and genuine user understanding. Future-oriented housing concepts bring inspiration to the everyday work and allows EKE Rakennus to strengthen its though leadership within the industry.
