Burbank credit union Logix has invested about $1 million in a rebranding campaign after dropping its decades-long name of Lockheed Federal Credit Union. The recent name change is part of a strategy to draw in more members after research revealed that the public thought the institution was exclusive to employees of aerospace giant Lockheed Martin. The credit union currently has 110,951 members and is aiming to grow its customer base by 7,500 members this year. For the quarter ending June 30, Logix had assets of $3.3 billion and deposits of $2.7 billion, making it the largest credit union based in the greater San Fernando Valley region. The name is meant to show that the credit union has distinctive, innovative and progressive attributes, said CEO David Styler. “We wanted something that would convey that we are the logical choice for banking services,” Styler said. The credit union informed its 400 employees about the Logix moniker in March and the transition became official in July with new signage at the Burbank headquarters and the 11 branches in the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Conejo valleys. The rebranding investment also included interior signs, promotional materials and gifts for employees such as water bottles and car fresheners. The credit union also has a new mascot: a robot powered by a jet pack. “I like the little man,” said Faye Cohill, a Logix member who was recently at the Burbank branch for a mortgage. “He has personality.” Retiring a name The decision to retire the Lockheed name created a lot of debate among the credit union’s executives and board of directors. For more than 70 years, the institution was identified with what had once been Burbank’s biggest employer and a pioneer in the Southern California aerospace industry. Nationally, however, single sponsor credit unions increasingly have changed their names, especially as their founding sponsors downsized, went out of business or even requested the change. Premier America Credit Union in Chatsworth, for instance, once had been the credit union for Litton employees. Kinecta Federal Credit Union, with locations in Woodland Hills and Westlake Village, was started for employees of the now defunct Hughes Aircraft Co. Lockheed moved its aircraft manufacturing operations and its famed Skunk Works research division out of Burbank beginning in the 1980s. “For our organization to survive we had to go beyond the boundaries of Lockheed Martin,” Styler said. Changing a name is the most difficult strategic marketing challenge a financial organization faces, said Mark Weber, president and CEO of Weber Marketing Group. Logix worked with the Seattle-based firm to create its new image. It is also the most emotionally challenging decision, because so many members will have close ties to the corporate sponsor, Weber said. “The longer they are a member, the longer they are affiliated with the original sponsor,” he said. Styler and other credit union employees say they’ve heard feedback from Lockheed retirees. The former employees said they understood the need to change the name, but were still upset the Lockheed name had gone away. “They are proud to have worked for Lockheed,” said Ernie Bolanos, senior branch sales manager. “To get away from the name was difficult for them.” New brand Weber conducted surveys and focus groups inquiring about the Lockheed name and devised a list of 500 potential replacements. The responses that came back from Weber’s research, done in early 2011, concluded that 80 percent of potential credit union members would not open accounts or do other business with Lockheed based on the name, thinking that it was exclusive to employees and family members of the aerospace company. “That is a huge barrier to get over in terms of adding new members and growing the organization,” Styler said, noting that Lockheed opened up its membership to non-employees in the mid-1980s. When Weber presented the 500 new names, Logix was among the first that came under consideration. A naming committee of management, non-management and board representatives whittled the choice down to two — Logix and another that Styler would not reveal. The board of directors made the final decision, he said. The credit union also revamped its website at the same time it changed its name, and the design team for that job came up with the new robot mascot. The fact that the mascot wears a jetpack is a nod to the credit union’s connection to Lockheed, Styler said. “The robot just became one of those distinctive characteristics that helps tell an interesting story in a fun way,” Weber said, noting the firm was not involved with creating the robot mascot.
Logic Wins at Credit Union
