Last week heralded the unveiling of Schillings’ new brand identity. Awarded to Goosebumps Brand Consultancy earlier this year, following a hunt for an agency with a proven record in brand transformation, the rebrand fully emphasises Shillings’ evolution from a successful law firm to a multidisciplinary business dealing with all aspects of reputational defence.

Under the catchy strapline – ‘Law at the speed of reputation’, the new brand shifts focus away from ‘service lines’, ‘sector verticals’ and the other standard pillars of professional services brands. Instead, it makes what Schillings does feel more real by concentrating on personifying the multitude of different issues that threaten the reputations of successful businesses and individuals.

“Our aim’, said Simon Cotterrell, Strategic Partner of Goosebumps, ‘was to introduce a bit of clarity with a brand that switched the perspective around to look at things from the client’s point of view. We believe it’s a rare example of a successful introduction of consumer brand logic into the world of professional services.”

Since acquiring the new alternative business structure (ABS) licence in May, which allowed them to offer their legal services alongside other complimentary services, Schillings has already succeeded in both recruiting experts from the world of corporate risk consulting, and integrating their previous acquisition of the cyber-security business – Vigilante Bespoke, with further acquisitions planned for the future.

“There was a time when defending reputations meant dealing with a handful of media owners. Over the last few years, with the advent of social media in particular, we’ve seen the rules of the game change completely’, said Schillings chief operating officer, Christopher Mills. “For a company like ours that means both applying the law differently and introducing other skills to the table. The rebrand was about capturing the diversity of our new offer in a clear and single minded way.”

The arresting visual style, built on the use of bold photography combined with the visual device – a pair of brackets used to represent the containment of the threat, is married with captivating headlines such as ‘The Anti-social Network’ and ‘The Friends in the Wrong Places’ to bring attention to issue from internet trolls to supply chain risk into sharp focus.