Bostik

Making one brand story work worldwide

Bostik already had a clear corporate brand story. The challenge was not in formulating it, but in asking: is this story relevant, recognisable, and usable for all international business units and their audiences?

In an organisation operating across different markets, cultures, and propositions, noise quickly arises. A story may work on paper, yet still fail to provide direction for communication and behaviour in practice. For Bostik, the task was therefore to test, connect, and activate the story.

With gr8 as a partner, it feels like Bostik has gained colleagues. I can fully trust that our brand story is positioned strongly in every project — from branding to product launches.

Robert Louer, Head of Global Branding

The behavioural question

What needed to change?

International teams should not only know the existing brand story, but recognise its relevance to their own context, and actively use it in communication and positioning.

Our approach

We started within the organisation itself. Together with various international business units, we explored how the existing brand story was interpreted, where it resonated, and where it clashed with daily practice and local audiences.

Based on these insights, we created clarity around three key questions:

What is universal in the story and must always remain intact?
Where is there room for nuance per market or audience?
How can the story guide communication choices?

This shared understanding formed the foundation for a corporate brand movie. Not a new story, but a film that summarises, strengthens, and makes the existing narrative tangible as a shared reference point for the entire organisation.

In addition, we developed a communication and activation plan to support and launch the film, ensuring the story would not only be watched, but actively used in both internal and external communication.

What this set in motion

The brand story gained stronger alignment and became more practical to apply. International teams recognised their own reality within it and used the brand movie as a starting point for further communication.

The story became a shared compass, rather than an abstract document.