BOWDEN - Councillors have voted to spend $10,000 (plus GST) to rebrand the Town of Bowden.
Councillors made that decision during a council meeting earlier this month, accepting a proposal by Okotoks-based Rynic Communications.
Coun. Carol Pion said the project is just part of the town's strategic planning. She said the goal is to have the rebranding done by the end of February so it's all in place for spring.
Pion is a member of the town's economic development committee, along with fellow councillors Randy Brown and Paul Webb.
"This is kind of the start of everything," Pion said.
"So once we have this branding, we have a logo, we can get our website up and running, we can do all that. We can get the signage that we need, we can get the new businesses that are coming into town to be all on that."
She said once designed, the town's new brand will go on the town's website as well as internal documents, letterhead and business cards.
Acting chief administrative officer Jacqui Molyneux is not sure how long the current Bowden brand has been in place. But she says it was in place in 2009 when she began working for the town.
Pion said Rynic principal Chris Field is highly recommended.
"We're getting a lot out of it, because we could be paying a lot more dollars for any kind of branding that anybody else could do," she added.
"We get that we need something," Coun. Sandy Gamble said, adding she'd like to see "new signs on the highway."
Coun. Randy Brown agreed.
"Yeah, we're definitely stagnant in this (regard). We keep talking about it," he said, adding that the town has been "in a holding pattern for a long time."
"It's a pretty good deal, I think," Mayor Robb Stuart said.
"Standing apart from other communities, regions , visitor experience and investment environments is a critical foundation for community prosperity," Field wrote in Rynic's branding proposal to the town.
"In a world of choice, today's municipal challenge/opportunity is to identify its distinguishing product(s) and value proposition and to enhance competitive advantage with pragmatic strategy that cuts through the clutter of expansive investment and community locational choice and marketing noise to forge a bond with people who are passionate about your community/region."
Rynic's previous clients include the Town of Okotoks, City of Airdrie and the Town of High River, Bowden's Molyneux noted in a memo to council.
