Greenhouse Fabrics & Anna Elisabeth
A Dual-Brand Transformation
Greenhouse Fabrics had built an impressive 75-year legacy as a fourth-generation, family-owned fabric distributor serving interior designers and upholsterers nationwide.
Operating two distinct brands—Greenhouse Fabrics and Anna Elisabeth—they possessed deep industry expertise, loyal customer relationships, and a differentiated service model.
Despite this operational excellence, they faced a critical challenge: without clear brand positioning and defined identities for each brand, they struggled to articulate what made them different and lacked the foundation needed to scale their culture and marketing strategically.
Project Details
Industry
Fabric Distribution & Home Furnishing
What We Did
Dual-Brand Strategy, Brand Heart, Brand Positioning, Brand Personality, Brand Advocates, Voice & Visual Direction
75
Years in business
Fourth-generation family heritage
2
Distinct brands
Strategic positioning for different audiences
Our Approach: The Brand Being Method
We applied Hoot's proprietary Brand Being Method™—the philosophy that Brand is the Being (who you are) and Marketing is the Doing (how you express it). This culture-driven approach focuses on building brands from the inside out.
We began by working separately with each brand to uncover their distinct identities while maintaining connection to the family business foundation. This revealed two complementary brands whose differences went far beyond customer type—they represented fundamentally different service philosophies rooted in the same family values. We created detailed brand advocate personas for each brand with distinct demographics that will make future marketing efforts highly effective.
We rallied Greenhouse Fabrics around the brand tension point of "Relaxed Legacy"—capturing the dynamic between deep generational wisdom and genuine belief that meaningful business happens when people feel free to be themselves. For Anna Elisabeth, we defined "Clever Class"—the tension between knowing exactly what makes great design tick and understanding that the best creativity happens when it doesn't feel forced.
From these brand foundations, we developed complete brand personalities for each. We established how Greenhouse Fabrics and Anna Elisabeth look and sound.
Strategic Differentiation and Growth Foundation
Together with Greenhouse Fabrics, we built dual brands that could resonate with distinct audiences while maintaining cohesive family business values. The strategic positioning moved them from competing on "good service" to owning defensible market positions.
We developed comprehensive visual identity directions for each brand. Greenhouse Fabrics embraces deep forest green, ornate decorative elements, traditional patterns, and vintage-inspired typography that references heritage craftsmanship.
Anna Elisabeth features warm, eclectic colors, playful asymmetrical layouts, mix of script fonts with clean serifs, and curated artisanal aesthetics.
Brand Doing
Beyond the rebrand, we developed a comprehensive strategic marketing plan to translate the new brand foundations into actionable growth initiatives. The plan addressed lead generation across multiple channels, content strategy aligned with each brand's personality, and tactics to reach both upholsterers and emerging designers through their preferred touchpoints.
Greenhouse Fabrics chose to establish an ongoing strategic marketing partnership with Hoot, functioning as an extension of their team to execute on the plan. This partnership includes campaign development, content creation that reinforces brand positioning, and market-specific messaging for their diverse audiences.
Immediate Impact
1. Internal Alignment
The leadership team and sales staff now speak a consistent language about what makes each brand unique. Values guide hiring decisions and customer interactions.
2. Strategic Clarity
The company can now make confident decisions about which brand to lead with for different customer segments and how to allocate marketing resources.
3. Differentiated Positioning
Both brands own unique market positions that competitors cannot easily replicate.
4. Marketing Foundation
All brand assets—from website copy to sample book design to social media—now flow from a consistent Brand Being foundation.
Long-Term Strategic Value
Scalable Culture
The Brand Heart model provides a framework for onboarding new team members and maintaining culture as the company grows.
Decision-Making Framework
When facing strategic questions (Should we offer this service? Pursue this partnership? Enter this market?), leadership can evaluate through the lens of Brand Being.
Differentiation in Commoditized Market
In an industry where many competitors compete on price or require exclusive relationships, Greenhouse and Anna Elisabeth now own distinct positions based on how they serve customers.
Generational Transition
As a fourth-generation family business, having codified values and brand identity prepares the company for future leadership transitions.
By doing the deep work of defining vision, purpose, values, and positioning, Greenhouse transformed from a company that "does good work" to one with a clear, defensible, and scalable brand identity.
The dual-brand strategy honors the distinct needs of upholsterers and designers while maintaining a cohesive family business identity rooted in Swedish values of time, craftsmanship, and freedom.
Most importantly, this isn't just branding—it's a foundation for cultural transformation that will guide Greenhouse Fabrics and Anna Elisabeth through their next 75 years.
Ready to Rediscover Your Brand's True Identity?
At Hoot Design Company, we believe the most powerful brands don't reinvent themselves—they rediscover who they've always been and express it with unprecedented clarity.