New South Supply
Brand identity, mascot design, and a 40th anniversary refresh for New South Construction Supply, built on its know-how and can-do attitude.
Building on 40 Years of Know-How
New South Construction Supply has served commercial and residential contractors across the Southeast since 1981. Years earlier, the company partnered with Brains on Fire to create a stronger identity that could stand out in a practical, no-nonsense industry. That work introduced Kandu the Bear, a mascot built around the strength, knowledge, and can-do attitude New South was already known for.
I helped design that original identity and illustrated Kandu, then returned nearly 20 years later to refresh the brand for New South’s 40th anniversary. I updated the logo, expanded the visual system, and developed new applications across apparel, vehicles, print, signage, and company materials. The refreshed identity gave New South a way to celebrate its history without looking stuck in it.
CLIENT
New South Construction Supply
AGENCY
Brains on Fire (2005)
Weirdo Works (2021)
YEAR
2005, refreshed 2021
MY ROLE
Art Direction, Brand Design, Illustration
DELIVERABLES
Brand Identity, Mascot Design, 40th Anniversary Logo, Apparel, Vehicle Graphics, Print & Environmental Materials
RESULTS
Identity and mascot in continuous use since 2005
Expanded across company vehicles, apparel, signage, and materials
Original identity revisited for the company’s 40th anniversary
AWARDS
HBSDealer Logo Design Grand Prize 2018
Rebrand 100, 2008
Honoring 40 Years: New South Logo Revamped
New South Supply Branding | Construction Crew Apparel
Keeping Teams & Partners Connected for 40 Years
New South Embraces Its Branding
A construction brand has to work somewhere besides a brand guide. For New South, that meant putting the identity directly into the hands — and onto the backs — of the people representing the company every day.
I extended the refreshed system across crew shirts and other internal apparel, using the bear, tagline, and bolder graphic language to make the brand feel less corporate and more like something employees would actually want to wear.
Uniting Fashion and Functionality with New South Supply Branding
Expert Style with Can-Do Attitude
The apparel system also expanded into hats, polos, and more polished pieces for sales teams and employees working with customers in the field. The challenge was keeping the same rugged personality while making the brand flexible enough for different kinds of workwear.
Kandu became a useful shorthand for the company itself: knowledgeable, tough, dependable, and a little friendlier than the typical construction-supply identity. That gave us a recognizable element we could use without needing the full logo everywhere.
New South Supply Branding | Team Member Hats and Polos
New South Supply Branding | Truck Wrap Concept
New South Supply Branding | Custom-wrapped Semi Truck
New South Revitalizes Truck Wraps to Highlight Brand Refresh
Taking It to the Streets
New South’s trucks gave the refreshed identity its biggest canvas. I developed vehicle graphics that used the brand’s blue palette, oversized messaging, and Kandu to turn delivery trucks and semis into moving brand pieces.
The scale changed, but the idea stayed the same: keep the company recognizable, practical, and confident without making a construction-supply truck feel overly designed. The vehicles became one of the most visible expressions of the refreshed brand out in the communities New South serves.
New South Supply Branding | Stationery
New South Supply Branding | Half-Page Ad
New South Supply Branding | Company Beliefs Poster
New South Supply Branding | Retail Shopping Bags Concept
One Brand, Plenty of Job Sites
The identity carried into the less glamorous but equally important pieces too: stationery, print ads, internal materials, posters, retail bags, and everyday company communications. Keeping those applications consistent helped the brand feel established without making every piece look identical.
”Since collaborating with Justin in 2005 during his time at Brains on Fire, I have been consistently impressed by his design services. From creating our rebranded logo, which still garners compliments and recognition after nearly 20 years, to various other design projects, Justin's work has always been impeccable and delivered promptly. His designs truly speak for themselves, and I give Justin my highest recommendation.
Jim SobeckRetired CEO of New South Construction Supply