Air Academy Credit Union approached La Macchia Group with a desire to expand their footprint in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Their site, a former bank location in a busy commercial strip mall, operated as a standard branch with multiple tellers in the years prior. Air Academy Credit Union had a vision to update this space to a bright, welcoming, and interactive branch with their brand at the forefront.
Chartered in 1955 as a credit union that served Lowry Air Force Base, Air Academy Credit Union's 12 branches serve everyone within the Denver and Colorado Springs area along the I-25 corridor, as well as a branch in Steamboat Springs.
While building out their new location in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, Air Academy Credit Union sought to update their brand to be more modern and flexible to fit the digital formats more often needed today. They wanted their new branding to show that anyone can join the Credit Union and not just open to Air Force and military. While a complete name change was not an option, they chose to remove ‘Federal’ from the name to minimize any additional possible confusion.
In addition to updating their logo, Air Academy also updated their tagline to be “Everyone Deserves Personal Banking”. “Everyone” reinforces that you don’t have to be Air Force or military to join the Credit Union. The tagline shows that Air Academy is there to support its members and the community no matter the situation. They also used this tagline to show that the Credit Union is doing what is right, not what is easy.
Their branded space incorporates their new logo in several capacities, including digital touch screens, wall graphics, and even the built-in casework. In order to achieve a bright, clean space, bright white and light wood tones are complimented with cheerful pops of their branded yellow and tangerine colors, and waves of teal and turquoise blues.
The incorporation of a touch-screen at the self-service desk enables members to view current rates, learn about services, and loans. Other screens throughout the branch are used for promotional messaging in high-visibility areas.
The branch also offers meeting spaces equipped with screens for employees and members to meet privately.
