Accelerating growth through seamless brand integration

What happens when a national railway company sets its sights beyond borders? How do you convince loyal customers, proud employees, and a new audience that a new name doesn’t mean leaving core values behind? And how do you introduce an iconic brand – seamlessly and boldly – in just a matter of month?

VR Group is on an ambitious growth journey, with Sweden playing a vital role in its future. The strategic focus lies in three key areas: customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and fostering an engaged workforce. Following the acquisition of MTRX, which operates between Stockholm and Gothenburg, VR set out to integrate the MTRX brand while maintaining its high standards. But this wasn’t just a brand migration. The mission was to make VR relevant and meaningful to Swedish customers, employees, and stakeholders, all while preserving the equity and reputation of MTRX.

The challenge

Integrating a brand without losing its unique strengths is no small feat. VR’s strategy focused on it’s three strategic pillars: customer satisfaction, operational efficiency and workforce engagement. The goals were clear:

• Preserve MTRX’s market reputation and equity.
• Position the VR brand effectively in the Swedish market.
• Ensure seamless alignment with VR’s broader growth ambitions.

The solution

Grow developed a comprehensive brand migration strategy tailored for VR’s expansion into Sweden:

• Brand Equity Evaluation: Analyzed the strengths of MTRX and VR across marktets in Finland and Sweden.
• Synergy Identification: Found opportunities to merge both brands authentically.
• Communication Concept: Created a locally resonant strategy that introduced VR in the Swedish market without diluting MTRX’s value.

The result

A unified but locally resonant brand strategy to support VR Group’s ambitions and secure its position in the Swedish market. This was the key outcome:

• Brand positioning: Identification of brand equity and value of MTRX+VR
• Brand Integration: Unified MTRX into the VR Group brand
• Strong Market Presence: Launched a communication and visual concept tailored for Swedish audiences.
• Actionable blueprint: A holistic roadmap for External/Internal brand launch