London – The creative company Grey London is being rebranded as Valenstein & Fatt to honour its Jewish founders and to stand up to modern-day discrimination.
- To avoid anti-Semitic prejudice, Lawrence Valenstein and Arthur Fatt named their company after the colour of the building’s wallpaper
- The rebranding began during the week when the British government triggered Article 50 and will last for 100 days
In a Dislocated World of political isolationism, Valenstein & Fatt is demonstrating a symbolic response to xenophobia and is taking action to show a commitment to tolerance and inclusion.
Marking 100 years since the agency was founded, the rebranding will run for 100 days. Valenstein & Fatt has also committed to publishing its diversity data and to launching a bursary to assist two young employees from ethnic minority and disadvantaged backgrounds with rent payments. It will also set up a taskforce to help create industry-wide diversity targets.
In addition, it will develop outreach programmes, working with 100 primary and secondary schools to inspire students to work in the creative industries, and will devise a mentoring initiative to match 50 talented young people with Valenstein & Fatt’s senior leadership.
The Big Picture
As a backlash against the distrust and disconnection explored in The Dislocated World, companies are instigating a widespread change in mindset by asserting their belief in a more tolerant and diverse society. For more, see our Civic Brands macrotrend.