Customer Stories
Energia: Building a Brand That Could Grow Without Breaking
By 2020, Energia had a quiet problem—and a good one.
Based in Smithtown, New York, Energia had built a strong reputation helping municipalities and school districts reduce energy costs through energy-efficient design and Energy Performance Contracting. Their work funded deeply needed building and facilities upgrades without increasing budgets, a critical capability in the public sector.
But the firm had evolved.
And their brand hadn’t kept up.
What once felt focused now felt limiting. The company’s name and messaging no longer reflected the full scope of its services, including MEP and energy engineering design, nor the depth of expertise on the team. At the same time, Energia began attracting attention from unexpected places: partners across the AEC community that needed advanced energy engineering design support.
The challenge wasn’t visibility.
It was identity.
Energia needed a brand that could accurately express who they already were without confusing their core audience or undermining years of earned trust.
Listening Before Designing
Rather than rushing into visuals or taglines, the rebrand began with listening.
Brandtelling took a consultative, “listen-first” approach, working closely with Energia’s leadership and technical staff to understand how the firm thought, spoke, and solved problems. The goal wasn’t to reinvent Energia, it was to clarify and elevate the story already taking shape inside the organization.
Thought leadership became the foundation. Energia’s engineers and designers weren’t positioned as service providers, but as problem solvers navigating complex financial, regulatory, and technical constraints for public-sector clients.
From there, a comprehensive rebrand took shape:
A new name and logo
A redesigned website
Clear, disciplined brand messaging
Supporting materials across PR, presentations, and digital channels
The result was a brand that felt credible, modern, and expansive, without abandoning the firm’s roots.
A Brand Built to Stretch
As Energia continued to grow, a second challenge emerged.
Interest from AEC partners increased, but the firm didn’t want to fragment its story by creating parallel narratives for different audiences. Instead of another reinvention, Energia worked with Brandtelling on a brand refresh, expanding the messaging to include AEC collaboration without disrupting the original narrative.
Because the foundation had been done correctly, the brand could stretch.
Energia was still Energia.
It simply spoke to more people.
Results That Went Beyond Marketing
The impact of the work showed up in ways that mattered:
More consistent message delivery across marketing and sales efforts
A brand story strong enough to support multi-year growth
Continued engagement with Brandtelling through outsourced Brand Management
Most notably, Energia earned a prestigious ACEC New York Engineering Excellence Award for one of its engineering engagements. Brandtelling supported Energia’s submission, helping articulate the firm’s technical excellence and real-world results among its AEC peers.
For Energia, the award was more than recognition—it was validation that the brand accurately reflected the quality and impact of their work.
Getting the Story Right Once
Perhaps the greatest success wasn’t the logo, the website, or the award.
It was this: Energia got its story right early enough—and deeply enough—that growth didn’t require reinvention. As the firm expanded from serving municipalities and school districts to collaborating across the AEC community, the narrative held.
A brand designed not just for who Energia was—but for who it was becoming.
“Most of all, working with Arthur has simply been a pleasure. He is someone you can trust, rely on, and genuinely enjoy collaborating with, and I’m grateful for everything he has brought to our organization.”
~ Kendra McQuilton, Energia CEO